GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — The Kent County Road Commission is preparing for West Michigan's first substantial snowfall of the winter season.
With lake-effect snow expected to begin the evening of Thanksgiving, some areas of West Michigan could see up to six inches of snow by Friday night. That snowfall total is expected to rise as more lake-effect snow rolls in over the weekend.
Steve Roon, director of local road construction and maintenance with the Kent County Road Commission, said crews are prepared to work around the clock to keep roads clear.
"As we're getting done with construction season coming into the winter, we've started to switch over a lot of those trucks from that construction to the ability to spread salt," Roon said. "Most of our vehicles can all remove mechanically snow, but we're well above 80 vehicles that are now ready to spread salt and chemicals as needed."
The road commission has enough staff to keep crews on the road 24/7 beginning Thursday night.
A new law passed this year requires drivers to stay at least 200 feet behind snow plows when traveling and at least 20 feet behind when stopped. Roon said snow plow drivers can sometimes have a hard time seeing around them, and they may reverse to better clear an area and not know a car is behind them.
You're asked to keep this in mind when hitting the road over the weekend.
Some of the most dangerous conditions, according to Roon, are during lake-effect snow that only impacts some areas.
"The motorists are driving down the road and they're not encountering any snowfall at all, and then they come across the pop-up storm that's whiteout conditions," he said. "So that's one of those things to be aware of your conditions in front of you."
Drivers should stay especially cautious when nearing or driving through intersections, as well as on overpasses and hills.
"The men and women that work out here take pride in what they do, and they want to do a great job," he said. "They want to make sure everyone that drives their roads has a safe road to drive on, so that they can get home safely. Their loved ones drive the same road. So they're trying to prepare those roads for everyone to safely drive on them."
