It’s been one year since a winter disaster on Interstate 95, when thousands of drivers were stranded on icy roads in Northern Virginia. State transportation leaders are reflecting on lessons learned from the incident.
“This was such an extraordinary event,” said state Sen. Dave Marsden, who chairs the Senate’s transportation committee.
Vehicles were at a standstill, some for 24 hours, drivers, many with little to no food or water, shutting off their engines in frigid weather to conserve dwindling fuel.
“There were multiple miles of cars that were stranded,” Marsden said. “It was instantaneously rain to ice to heavy volumes of snow.”
People who were stuck tried, unsuccessfully, to get information from the Virginia Department of Transportation about what was happening.
That is why VDOT said it has since implemented a new system that sends alerts directly to the phones of drivers who get stuck in emergencies.
“It’s two-way messaging,” VDOT spokeswoman Kelly Hannon said. “You don’t need to opt-in or download anything; it will just come right to your device.”
Hannon said the alert system would be used only in severe situations, where people are trapped for hours.
“Not only can we push messages out to motorists who might be stopped in a geographic area, but it allows them to communicate back,” Hannon said. “It will allow people to engage with us if needed.”
A report released in August by Virginia’s inspector general revealed glaring missteps by state agencies during the incident.
The report’s recommendations included VDOT applying what it learned from past events and incorporating the lessons into agency policies and procedures, increased snow-related disaster and recovery training, and communication training to improve messaging to the public.
“They have certainly expanded the usual cast of characters who deal with these kinds of events,” Marsden said.
Marsden said that if a similar situation ever came up in the future, he would like to see the National Guard use helicopters to bring resources to stranded drivers.
“You need to have a backup plan to be able to get supplies, food and medical care to them,” Marsden said.
