Metro Detroit drivers deal with icy roads ahead of Christmas

With these temps at or around freezing, road crews across Metro Detroit say their biggest concern right now is refreezing temperatures. They're out salting the roadways.

"The roads have been slippery. People have been sliding out already," said one driver. "There does need to be a little bit more salt now."

The crews working at the Road Commission for Oakland County have gotten the memo from Mother Nature and then some with about 50 trucks out countywide dousing the streets with salt as they wait to see what else might be needed, with winter conditions subject to change.

"Right now we’re kind of waiting to see what else the weather does tonight. If the temperatures drop and this all turns to solid ice, we’ll increase the number of trucks and continue to salt and blade," road commission spokesperson Craig Bryson.

We saw team members loading up their rigs at the Southfield salt dome off Franklin Street near Northwestern as they prepare for a potentially long night.

"There’s enough slush right now, we’re using the underbelly plows to scrape that off the road, and we’ll continue that all night or as long as needed," said Bryson. "If the temperatures drop down, we get things melted with salt, and if everything freezes, then there’s the risk of alot of ice. And so we’re going to try to stay out and keep putting salt down and try to prevent that from happening."

With that in mind, drivers we talked with are brushing up on their own strategies for staying safe.

"Just get up a little early. Take your time. Don’t be speeding. Stay in your lane, keep the music down. Windows defrost - I don’t know that’s just what I do," said one driver.

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