UDOT prepares for a difficult Tuesday morning commute

SALT LAKE CITY — Even though it’s technically spring, the winter weather doesn’t want to go away.

On Monday, Little Cottonwood Canyon was closed to visitors as Utah’s Department of Transportation handled avalanche control. Meanwhile, morning commuters were dealing with wet roads in the rest of the Salt Lake Valley.

UDOT crews called Monday morning a practice run as they plan to see a more significant impact on the roads for Tuesday’s commute.

“There’s a tendency in April for a lot of people to become more complacent because a lot of us were just dealing with wet roads this morning, but there were those slushy spots and pockets where you would see snow building up and so if you’re driving at normal freeway speeds that can be a problem,” explained John Gleason, spokesperson for UDOT.

He also expresses that their crews will treat a spring snowstorm no differently than a winter one. Crews will be out in full force overnight, treating the roads with salt and plowing any snow that sticks.

“Our plows will be out there doing everything they can do to keep people safe, but we are asking everybody to do our part as well and slow down,” Gleason said.

He reminds drivers to leave early if they must head somewhere in the morning for the next few days.