<p>Just received our village’s monthly newsletter, and am floored by an article (or warning) on the cost of rock salt for our roads this winter. The thing that disturbs me is that the mayor says that the 350% increase in costs is not fully understood. Last year our village paid $41/ton and this year will be paying $140/ton. </p>
<p>Needless to say, this means they will be using their supplies more judiciously throughout the winter. Last year our village’s budget for salt was $175,000 and this year it will be $600,000.</p>
<p>What’s up with the cost of road salt? Even with increased fuel prices for delivery, it can’t count for a 350% increase. Anyone else notice these kinds of increases in their areas?</p>
<p>Your question about the cost of road salt reminded me of an article that appeared last week in a local community paper here in the Detroit area. The local downriver communities decided to group together to gather bids on road salt (with the hope of getting a better price). The communities got no bids from the salt companies. This despite the fact that the Detroit area is sitting on some 1500 acres of salt When their bid was accepted, the cost was 30% higher than last year.</p>
<p>michuncle -our community purchases their supply through the Illinois State joint purchasing program, so it’s many communities. I’m guessing this must be the going rate for everyone in IL based on that.</p>
<p>That is the worst stuff for cars, roads, bridges, and the environment. They should stop using it and just use sand and the sun. Many states no longer use that crap. Buy some real good snow tires instead.</p>
<p>It is very icy in my state in the winter. The sun doesn’t shine at night when temps drop rapidly and ice forms and rarely during the day in the winter! It’s not like other places in the country where the sun comes out and melts everything every day or two. Winter and ice arrive in late November and stick around until as late as April. We need the salt to stay alive on the roads! Seriously.</p>
<p>In New England, you may have snow plows creating snow banks on powdery snow. The wind blows a bit of the snow back on the road where it melts due to cars going by and the sun. Then it freezes later on.</p>
<p>Boston can be a miserable place to live in during the winter if you own a vehicle and don’t have off-street parking. Stuff like your wheels freezing in ice can be a real pain.</p>
<p>I’m afraid after today- we won’t see the sun till May
I don’t have studded snow tires- but we have too damn many hills not to use sand or salt on the black ice.</p>
<p>A mix of sand and salt is used. The sand is more like tiny stones than beach sand, no fun on the garage floor, walking on the side of the street, but better than nothing. Barrons doesn’t know what he is talking about, his sojourn here was eons ago. The sun doesn’t shine enough to help, it actually hurts when it melts snow that then becomes ice, and snow tires are for SNOW, not ice.</p>
<p>wis75 - so are you saying they combine sand and salt in one mixture that they spread, or that some places they use sand, and others they use salt? When I’m in WI, I’m mostly on interstate, and I’ve always been told it is sand.</p>
<p>I’ve read last year many communities used more than twice the tonnage of road salt compared to past years which reduced the stockpiles nationwide, raising prices. Same communities are signing contracts now for extra quantities to avoid the higher prices that will come midwinter IF it’s another snowy/icy winter, putting more pressure on supplies, pushing prices up even more.</p>
<p>The thing I have a problem with in our community is that they haven’t bought more salt than last year, and are warning us that because of the cost of salt, they will be much more judicious in using it (and I live at the end of a cul-de-sac, so we will be the last ones salted). God forbid they have to buy more salt, and it costs more than what they’ve paid already for this salt. </p>
<p>4trees - do you have any sort of link to this information. I’d love to learn more so I can have a better idea of what our village was thinking.</p>
<p>Regarding sand vs. salt or a combo, it can be a problem when you have freezing rain with temperature fluctuations. They salt, while it’s icy, then it warms up and rains, salt washes away, temps drop again and voila! ICE! This is why they also sand. I don’t know enough about road maintenance to say for sure, but the trucks I’ve seen seem to send out a mix sometimes. If not, they’d have a salt truck, then a sand one. ok, I’m completely clueless as to how it’s done, but I know that both sand and salt are put down during the same weather event.</p>
<p>Sand and/or salt in the same spray- depends on the weather (temperatures and precipitation) as stated above. A few years ago they were ignoring cul de sacs when there was just a bit of snow (ignoring the fact that it doesn’t melt between snowfalls and all adds up)- one noon time I was walking our dog and complained to the police about a car doing “cheerios” (spinning around in circles) in them- there are several near us- later that day the plow came around, followed by the sand/salt truck… Priority plowing memories- the residential bus routes would be done several times and lesser streets not at all in the same time period on a heavy snow day. And by the time side streets and cul de sacs are done, if at all, there has often been too much car traffic with melting/freezing that the plows don’t do much good… sigh, let’s hope last winter’s records are not repeated. The truck also seems to spray only a token amount of sand near our house, ie a few grains on top of the snow…</p>
