DETROIT (WXYZ) — Commuters faced a treacherous evening rush hour Wednesday as more snowfall than expected created icy conditions that brought major roads to a standstill across metro Detroit, with some drivers reporting their commute times more than doubled.
Watch Brett Kast's video report below:
The heavy snow began just before rush hour. On Telegraph Road near Long Lake in Bloomfield Township, police say semitrucks became stuck due to icy conditions, creating miles of delays for northbound traffic.
"Very icy, very slick and then it's just the traffic and everything. People getting off work, trying to get home," said Andrea Edeaddy, one of many drivers caught in the chaos.
"Couple semitrucks are stuck down there on Telegraph, so everyone is kinda forced into one lane," said Gordon McLeod, another driver navigating the difficult conditions.
The Road Commission for Oakland County deployed 60 to 70 trucks throughout the evening to combat the conditions, with more potentially needed overnight. Craig Bryson, senior communications manager for the commission said the timing of the snowfall significantly hampered their efforts.
“One of the problems we had is that the snow was coming down so hard prior to rush hour," Bryson said. "The traffic was already slowed down. Even though we had our trucks out, our trucks then can't get through that rush-hour traffic faster than anyone else. So we had our trucks out there mostly just inching along on slow moving roads."
Bryson said the roads had not been pre-treated or salted prior to the snowfall.
"In this particular case, the forecast was for a relatively light amount of snow, at least our forecast. I think we've gotten more snow for a longer, uninterrupted period of time than we anticipated,” Bryson said. “It (pre-treating) probably would've helped a little, but I'm not sure how much it would've helped... it would've been hard to get things in decent shape regardless if we pre-treated."
Looking ahead to the morning commute, Bryson expressed cautious optimism that conditions would improve.
"It looks like the snow should stop a little before the morning rush hour starts, so that will give us time to clean up and get a good layer of salt down there," Bryson said.
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