Did you see the number of vehicles in the ditch around Huxley yesterday? And that’s where the road remained OPEN.
Did you grow up in Urbandale? Because it appears that you have no idea what it can be like out in the open.
2/22-24 Winter Weather Thread
- Thread starter Trice
- Start date
Did you see the number of vehicles in the ditch around Huxley yesterday? And that’s where the road remained OPEN.
Did you grow up in Urbandale? Because it appears that you have no idea what it can be like out in the open.
Even if you could open in north of Ames, where are the next gates? Dows? Clear Lake? Opening it in sections in Iowa like that isn't exactly helping anything, it's just pushing your food around on your plate to make it look like you've made progress.
No point in opening it to a flood of trucks for just 60 miles or something. Still closed in Minnesota as well last I knew.
No point in opening it to a flood of trucks for just 60 miles or something. Still closed in Minnesota as well last I knew.
You didn’t but others definitely did. You’ve been respectful about it and I appreciate it. Others not so much. I’m sure it isn’t an easy decision and I by no means envy them having to make it. I just think they have been a bit overly cautious to downgrade some things. I was expecting the drive to Ames to be much worse than it was. It’s always good to be cautious though.
Not sure why I am responding to such a silly argument, but I-35 in Southern Minnesota is even worse than in Northern Iowa. They had widespread 10-12 inches of snow up there and I-35 is closed up to I-90. It is also still snowing there. So lets say that the DOT opens the interstate up to the border. Then what? Where are you going to put thousands of stranded trucks up there while they wait for Minnesota to open up?
I-35 two miles north of the Minnesota border.
Edit: And by the way, If they should happen to open I-35 even through Minnesota, I-90 is also closed all the way to the Wisconsin border to the east and for at least 50 miles to the west.
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What is your experience/expertise in winter road closure decisions? I think that is what is making you look dumb. People are saying let the experts/stakeholders handle it. You’re saying you know best. So put up or shut up is what I’m saying and stop whining.
And what you don’t seem to understand is that the interstate from Des Moines to ames was never as bad as it wasn’t north of ames. They got more snow north of here.
It's really easy to cherry pick pictures from the DOT plow cameras and say the roads are OK. There are several other pictures that show the road completely covered in snow and you can't see any lane markers.
The semis are not sitting on the interstate, they are on the shoulder. I would know since I drove by them at the rest stop north of Ankeny, the Hwy 210 ramp and Hwy 30 in Ames this morning on my way to work.
It’s a message board if you don’t want to discuss stuff go somewhere else. I didn’t say I know best. I posted an opinion and wanted to discuss it. I can be wrong just like the DOT can be wrong. That’s what the message board is for.
Shoulder isn’t good enough in my opinion. They should be fully off the roadway.
There would be a clear advantage to opening up sections. Not everyone is going all the way to Canada. So clearly let people know what section is open and let some of the traffic start going. Now, would everyone still rush and think they will be first in line at the next gate, possibly.
https://www.desmoinesregister.com/s...d-warning-i-35-des-moines-crashes/2978458002/
The delay in the reopening is for a slew of reasons, said Craig Bargfrede, winter operations administration for the DOT.
Sections of interstate in north-central Iowa near Mason City and Clear Lake are causing the most problems to clear, said Bargfred who described "pretty phenomenal drifts" up to 8 feet tall covering some sections of the road.
"In those conditions, we don't close those roads, the roads basically close themselves," he said.
Clearing the large drifts requires heavy machinery and once it's cleared, the Iowa DOT still has to drop a layer of material on the road to help prevent icy spots. Even then, driving conditions will be far from ideal, said Bargfrede, who warned of very slippery roads going forward.
The delay in the reopening is for a slew of reasons, said Craig Bargfrede, winter operations administration for the DOT.
Sections of interstate in north-central Iowa near Mason City and Clear Lake are causing the most problems to clear, said Bargfred who described "pretty phenomenal drifts" up to 8 feet tall covering some sections of the road.
"In those conditions, we don't close those roads, the roads basically close themselves," he said.
Clearing the large drifts requires heavy machinery and once it's cleared, the Iowa DOT still has to drop a layer of material on the road to help prevent icy spots. Even then, driving conditions will be far from ideal, said Bargfrede, who warned of very slippery roads going forward.
Possibly? Guaranteed. Remember they get paid by the mile and by delivering on time. It is in each one's best interest to get moving as soon as possible.
