The Washington region’s big dig out from under this weekend’s historic snowstorm seemingly progressed well Monday as temperatures neared 40 degrees and many commuters stayed off the roads, easing the way for plows to get into the neighborhoods.
Despite some progress, many challenges remained. Side streets were partly snow covered and bumpy from new potholes. Travelers stranded by the unprecedented December nor’easter that dumped 16.6 inches at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, and up to 2 feet elsewhere, struggled to escape the region. And melted snow was expected to refreeze overnight.
“There’s just a marked difference in what 24 hours meant to the city,” Mayor Adrian Fenty said Monday during a news conference near RFK Stadium. “We still know there is a lot of work to be done.”
The District remained in blizzard cleanup mode even as the snow emergency was lifted, the city government opened for business and public works employees resumed trash and recycling collection. More than 300 trucks were deployed Monday, with fewer expected overnight and into Tuesday.
The D.C. Department of Public Works issued 1,179, $250 parking tickets and towed 214 vehicles during the 48-hour snow emergency, said agency director Bill Howland. The fine revenue for the two days could top $316,000.
The Virginia Department of Transportation sought to have all 7,000 miles of Northern Virginia roadway cleared within 48 hours of the storm ending, but that effort was complicated as traffic and warmer temperatures packed the snow and changed much of it to ice. Roads, especially those in subdivisions, will not be cleared until Wednesday, VDOT said.
On Monday, the Capital Beltway saw backups at both Georgetown Pike and Van Dorn Street during the day, VDOT spokeswoman Joan Morris said. And by early evening, crews were still working to clear snow from the shoulder lanes of Interstate 66.
“It’s quite an operation to get those huge mounds of snow off the shoulder lanes and into the dump trucks,” she said.
Arlington County canceled trash pickup through Wednesday because large trucks cannot navigate the 256 miles of residential streets.
Montgomery County, meanwhile, expects to finish plowing its 5,000 miles of roadway by Tuesday morning.
“We’re in good shape,” said spokeswoman Esther Bowing.
Not good enough, however, to reopen schools. Montgomery remains closed Tuesday, but might reopen Wednesday. Fairfax, Loudoun, Arlington, Prince William and Prince George’s counties shut down their public schools until January. The problem: icy roads and snow-covered sidewalks.
Examiner Staff Writers William C. Flook and Alan Suderman contributed to this report.
