Stay Off the Roads Wednesday – Give VDOT Time to Make Them Safe for You

STAUNTON – (4 a.m.) The deepest snowfall in several years has buried roadways in parts of the Shenandoah Valley and Alleghany Highlands. Treacherous driving conditions are found throughout the region, where some counties received up to a foot of snow from Tuesday’s winter storm. Additional wintry mix is forecast for Wednesday afternoon, and could bring a coating of ice to previously plowed roadways.

Stay off the roads as the Virginia Department of Transportation crews and contractors from the VDOT Staunton District work to make them passable. VDOT will continue plowing and treating around the clock on continuous 12-hour shifts. Interstates and key primary routes are plowed first, followed by secondary roads and subdivisions.

Snow and ice cover major parts of the roads in the Staunton District, especially those in the central and southern Shenandoah Valley and Alleghany Highlands. Here are the road conditions as of 4 a.m. Wednesday in the 11-county district:

Interstate 64 – Moderate conditions in Alleghany and Rockbridge counties. Minor conditions in Augusta County.

Interstate 66 – Minor conditions in Warren County.

Interstate 81 – Moderate conditions in Rockbridge County. Minor conditions in Augusta, Rockingham, Shenandoah and Frederick counties.

Primary roads – Moderate conditions in Alleghany, Bath, Rockbridge, Augusta, Rockingham and Page counties. Minor conditions in Highland, Shenandoah, Frederick, Clarke and Warren counties.

Secondary roads – Moderate conditions in Alleghany, Bath, Rockbridge, Augusta, Rockingham, Page, Shenandoah, Frederick and Clarke counties. Minor conditions in Highland and Warren counties.

Weather and road conditions vary significantly around the state. If travel is essential, check local weather sources and road conditions at 511Virginia for your entire route before leaving.

The updated URL and website for 511Virginia is https://511.vdot.virginia.gov/. Apps are also available for Android and iOS devices. 511 has traffic cameras, current crash locations, weather conditions and more. The public can sign-up for 511 alerts to be sent to their personal device. Roads with snow and ice conditions are marked minor, moderate, severe or closed.

Road condition definitions:

• Closed – Road is closed to all traffic.
• Severe – drifting or partially blocked road.
• Moderate – snow or ice on major portions of the roadway. 
• Minor – bare pavement except for isolated spots of snow, ice or slush.  Driving with caution is recommended.

VDOT is responsible for snow removal on all state-maintained roads as follows: 

• The Interstate Highway System and limited-access roadways are VDOT’s first priority.  
• Primary roads (routes numbered 1 to 599) and major secondary routes (numbered 600 and up) with vital emergency and public facilities, or those with high-traffic volumes, will be cleared along with interstate and limited-access roadways as resources allow.  
• Low-volume secondary roads and subdivision streets will be treated after higher-priority routes are completed and additional resources are available. 

Another information source is the VDOT website: https://www.vdot.virginia.gov, which includes a dedicated weather travel page.

The VDOT Customer Service Center can be accessed through its mobile friendly website at https://my.vdot.virginia.gov/. Agents are on site 24/7 every day of the year to assist the public. People can also call the VDOT Customer Service Center at 800-FOR- ROAD (800-367-7623).

The Staunton District X (Twitter) feed is at @VaDOTStaunton. The VDOT Staunton District has a group page on Facebook. Follow VDOT statewide accounts on Facebook, Flickr, and YouTube. Links to all of VDOT’s statewide and district social-media channels are found here.

The VDOT Staunton District serves Frederick, Shenandoah, Clarke, Warren, Page, Rockingham, Augusta, Highland, Rockbridge, Alleghany and Bath counties.

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