What is up with towns shutting down because a tiny bit of snow? (Portland: how much, home)

[jayuso]

Well it's official here in my town, they shut down schools, and put chains on the bus tires which can now only go at a maximum speed of 25 miles per hour. And there's not even any snow here! some in the mountains yeah but not here.

Plus some lines shut down completely

Are they honestly that afraid of a little bit of snow?

I heard about people getting out of their cars of the freeway to stare up at the sky all because a few flakes of snow were falling.

BTW please don't derail the thread by calling me a troll and name calling. This is legit (Tune in to the news) as is my question. If you do that I'll merely report

[figmalt]

1. Hills
2. Unlike areas that tend get a lot of snow, the PNW tends to hover around 32 degrees, so it gets extremely slick, ices, melts, gets slick again.
3. The roads don't get plowed.
4. The roads don't get salted.
5. Therefore, refer to items 1-2 again.

I grew up in Idaho and know a little bit about snow. Yes, there is over-reaction, but it is different here too.

I have also been stuck in Portland traffic during a snow storm (both times trying to get home from the airport to Hillsboro). The first time took me 5 hours. The second time took me 7 hours. You can scoff and laugh, but it's no joke when you're out there in the madness.

[sweetana3]

Even in areas of regular snow, the first time it snows, even a little, causes hundreds of accidents. So predictable that we stay off the roads and just listen to the radio broadcast of what is happening.

Then it gets a better but only after the first day. We have heavy salt and sand and it still happens.

[Squidlo]

It never snows enough in Portland for people to be ready for it.

Its a constant in winter in other parts of the country, therefore people have adapted to it.

You should see San Antonio with a dusting of snow. Its absolutely hilarious how freaked out the town gets. Its so rare it paralyzes the city.

[davemess10]

Originally Posted by Squidlo

It never snows enough in Portland for people to be ready for it.

But it does happen almost every year, so why not be at least a little "ready for it"?

[The Cactus Leaguer]

The overreactions in the media are always good for a laugh (newsflash - they are in on the joke as well).

[hamellr]

For the bajillionth time, it's not the snow! It's the black ice under it coupled with hills.

Temperatures during a snow storm hover near the freezing point. As cars drive over the snow and ice it melts just a tiny bit, filling in any cracks and uneven parts that might give traction and then re-freezes. In an hour a previously snowy road can turn into a solid sheet of very slick ice. This just doesn't happen in the midwest or in Eastern States because the temperatures tend to drop well below freezing and the snow doesn't melt as it's driven over.

This is the major reason why there are delays and closures, to give the roads time to melt into slush before turning into ice.

[PNW-type-gal]

The snow removal budget is based on the average winter, which is just a dusting of snow and occasional ice - there isn't enough equipment or manpower to deal with major storms, because that would require a huge capital expenditure that just sat there most years, depreciating away.

Once a big storm comes in and there is ice and snow all over the metro area (instead of just in the hills), the cities/counties can't cope and things shut down for the couple of days it takes to go away. If you live in the area long enough you learn to deal with it or stay out of it.

[EnricoV]

Originally Posted by davemess10

But it does happen almost every year, so why not be at least a little "ready for it"?

How much more in taxes do you want to pay in order to purchase the equipment to be "ready for it" when it's usually only a few hours of snow? Isn't it better just encourage people to stay home, and wait it out.

[wanderbygrace]

As a former Ohioan, I have to admit to being very amused by the reaction this week of the Portlandians. On the other hand, as hamellr said, the winter weather here is very different from that of other areas (e.g. Ohio), so I can see reasoning for the fuss. All of the fuss? Well, I don't know about that.

It's still very comical to me, though.