Date:  Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Contact: Alice Fiman, WSDOT Communications, 360-705-7080

OLYMPIA - Road crews breathed a sigh of relief as the the rain stayed away and Central Puget Sound area temperatures climbed above freezing Thursday morning.

"All our road crews were out, and we were very fortunate the road temperatures increased quickly this morning. This helped us get most of our Puget Sound area roads bare and wet by noontime," said Chris Christopher, Director of Maintenance Operations for Washington State Department of Transportation. "We thank drivers for taking precautions overnight and this morning."

Christopher said WSDOT isn’t quite done with this November storm, and he expects traffic volumes to build most of the afternoon and into the evening hours.

"The forecast still calls for up to a foot of snow in the mountains and Eastern Washington temperatures are still below freezing," he said. "Most of the primary highways in Western Washington are bare and wet, but drivers should prepare for snow and ice in the outlying areas, over the mountain passes and into Eastern Washington."

The early November weather was a good reminder that's it time for travelers to prepare for winter conditions. Drivers should prepare for winter weather by packing cold-weather supplies and tire chains, and check travel and roadway conditions on WSDOT’s website before hitting the highways.

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WSDOT keeps people, businesses and the economy moving by operating and improving the state's transportation systems. To learn more about what we're doing, go to www.wsdot.wa.gov/news for pictures, videos, news and blogs. Real time traffic information is available at www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic or by dialing 5-1-1.

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