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Down to what temperature is road salt effective?
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That is a piece of string question, we have had main roads ice free at -10C, my residential road has rock hard ice with salt embedded in it at a current -2C.
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>> That is a piece of string question, we have had main roads ice free at
>> -10C, my residential road has rock hard ice with salt embedded in it at a
>> current -2C.
>>
It is the road temp and air temp that determines whether there is ice - I live on a hill, the last 50 yds is flat and in the shadow of a hill side - the hill can be fine and the foot of the road a skating rink - the air temp is the same.
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To be effective though salt has to be put down before the snow.
Here in W Sussex there's 6 inches or so today, temperature above freezing, sporadic sunshine... and even the main road covered with packed snow, or half-covered. My car gets fair grip on that, but one has to observe due caution, delicacy on the controls and longer stopping distances.
I still get irritated though by people who creep along at 20 on it, when there are no hazards or curves visible for half a mile down the road. What do they think is going to happen? One of these 'children running out' beloved of non-driving policewomen in towns? Or are they so clumsy that they just stamp on the pedals every time and can't learn the feathering technique?
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>>I still get irritated though by people who creep along at 20 on it,
I think it fits in with the theory that you can't go too slowly when there's ice and snow about. Wrong, of course, and the reason that Hemel Hempstead was gridlocked yesterday with an inch of benign snow - you need a certain amount of momentum at times.
Maybe if (whisper) winter/M+S (not M&S) tyres were compulsory, although overkill in pure terms, it might help keep the roads moving. It's the lowest common denominator that brings us all to a halt.
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Most can't 'drive' in the dry so M+S ain't gonna help them.
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Effectiveness of road salt - Falkirk Bairn
