Most of the Netherlands is covered under a thick layer of snow and this week winter is taking it even more. It remains treacherous on the roads, especially since road salt is now less effective.
After the heavy snowfall on Sunday and today, the winter weather will shift up a gear in the coming days. Temperatures drop further, with a local -15 degrees Celsius or even colder at night. During the day, the mercury no longer rises above freezing and according to meteorologist Johnny Willemsen van Weather online this creates additional difficulties for traffic. “The road salt does a poor job, especially in the evenings, nights and mornings, due to the very low temperatures. Below -7 degrees the effect of road salt decreases,” quotes the ANP news agency.
The temperature of the asphalt has dropped far below -7 degrees this week and it can still get slippery despite road salt. To prevent as much slipperiness as possible, 11 million kilos of road salt was scattered on Monday morning. The fact that snow is also removed makes a difference, but on back roads and in residential areas, flattened snow freezes up and it is almost impossible to scatter against it. On the larger roads, the wind can also cause snow to accumulate on the road surface and freeze. The motto for this week is therefore to remain extra careful. During the day the conditions are relatively the least treacherous, but keeping extra distance and moderating speed remain of great importance, according to Weeronline.