Chicago Weather: Snow-ice mix slickens roads and sidewalks
CHICAGO (WLS) -- Snow and ice due to freezing rain caused dangerous conditions on the roads throughout the Chicago area Tuesday morning, and slippery conditions persisted throughout the day. Drivers are encouraged to be diligent during the evening commute as precipitation is expected to change throughout the day.
High temperatures reached the upper 30s on Tuesday, but more cold air moves in midweek.
Drivers are advised to reduce speed, keep a safe distance and watch for ice as roads may become slick.
Drivers across northwest Indiana should expect to encounter slick conditions on the roads all morning and through the afternoon, INDOT said. Widespread freezing rain, sleet and snow blanketed 13 Indiana counties.
Illinois State Police issued alerts about icy roads for Grundy, Kendall and Will counties.
The Jane Addams Expressway was covered in snow and dotted with crashes during the morning commute. The Tri-State in Lake County, Ill., the outbound Stevenson near LaGrange Road, the inbound Bishop Ford near Sibley, westbound I-80 near 355, and Rt. 59 in Warrenville all saw snow cover and crashes. Indiana roads, including the Borman, also saw icy conditions. Indiana crashes were reported on the Borman and on Cline near I-90.
Public transportation was also affected. In Chicago, CTA Green, Pink and Yellow lines experienced mechanical issues for several hours due to ice building on a handful of locations on the rail system, the CTA said.
As of 3:45 p.m., O'Hare International Airport was reporting 15-30 minute delays for de-icing and more than 420 flights cancelled by airlines. Midway Airport reported 30 minute delays and 70 flights cancelled by the airlines.
Widespread freezing rain began winding down around 11 a.m., but was still being reported especially south of the city.
Temperatures for the rest of the week will drop enough to challenge records. Our record-low high temperature for Wednesday is 17, set in 1890. The high Wednesday is currently projected at 19. Thursday's low is forecast at 0, while the record low for the day is also 0, set in 1978. Friday's low is forecast at 1, with the record low for March 6 being 2.
The heaviest snow fell north of I-88 around 5 a.m.
"The ice should stay less than a tenth of an inch, but then any ice is dangerous out there," ABC7 meteorologist Jerry Taft said. "Certainly if you're driving, or even walking, it will be hazardous."
"You just have to be careful you don't slip," said resident Wayne Burke. "I had my foot slip out a couple of times, but I caught my footing."
WATCH: ABC7 First Alert Weather Forecast
In Chicago, the Department of Streets and Sanitation deployed the full fleet of over 280 snow plows and salt spreaders along with 26 smaller four-by-four snow plows to main streets.
To view the snow fleet in real time, visit www.chicagoshovels.org.
