Ice-glazed roads have paralyzed much of North Texas, with highways shuttered and officials pleading with residents to simply stay home as winter’s icy grip tightens across the region.
State Highway 114 in Grapevine remained closed in both directions overnight due to treacherous conditions, with reopening not expected until 9 a.m. Monday, according to transportation officials who continue battling the aftermath of the weekend storm that swept through the region.
Frozen Metroplex
A stubborn cocktail of ice, sleet and snow has coated most of North Texas, creating what officials describe as extremely hazardous driving conditions that aren’t expected to improve until late Tuesday morning. The winter mix has transformed familiar roadways into dangerous obstacles for even the most careful drivers.
How much frozen precipitation actually fell? The Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex received primarily sleet, with accumulations measuring between 1 to 2 inches across most areas. Communities north of the metroplex saw heavier amounts — 3 to 5 inches of mixed snow and sleet — while areas south of Dallas recorded roughly an inch of wintry precipitation.
“Conditions are a little bit challenging,” acknowledged Texas Department of Transportation officials, in what might qualify as the understatement of the season. TxDOT crews have outlined a methodical multi-step process to clear roadways: first applying more brine solution, followed by salt treatments, and finally scraping to remove the resulting slush and ice from road surfaces.
Official Response
The Texas Department of Public Safety hasn’t minced words about the situation. They’ve issued urgent advisories asking Texans to stay off roads entirely if possible, citing a dangerous combination of extreme cold, freezing rain, ice accumulation and snow that has created potentially life-threatening travel hazards.
That warning comes as no surprise to residents who ventured out Sunday only to find neighborhood streets resembling skating rinks and major thoroughfares reduced to crawling speeds — when they’re passable at all.
The winter storm’s timing has proven particularly disruptive, arriving just as the workweek begins and forcing countless schools and businesses to announce closures or delays for Monday.
For those absolutely required to travel, officials recommend carrying emergency supplies, maintaining significantly reduced speeds, and avoiding sudden braking or acceleration that could trigger dangerous slides on ice-covered surfaces.
Until temperatures rise enough to melt the frozen precipitation — which forecasters don’t expect until midweek — North Texans are facing a stark reality: sometimes the safest journey is the one not taken at all.
