Why Doesn’t This City Salt the Roads?

As someone who’s lived where snow and ice are common: WHY DOESN’T THIS CITY SALT THE ROADS? Why put up with school and business closures when that magical substance, SALT, could melt us out of our frozen hellscape? —Salty About Salt

In 1979, Dominos Pizza rolled out a bold promotion: delivery in 30 minutes or your order was free. After a few dozen Dominos-involved traffic fatalities, however, the chain changed its mind and ended the offer in 1985. I worked at Dominos in 2004, 19 years later, and we’d still get at least two customers a week who believed the deal—a deal that ended before 20 current members of Congress were born—was still in effect. Once the public gets an idea into its head, good luck dislodging it.

You see, Salty, it’s true there was a time when Portland abjured the use of road salt, and to this day complaints like yours echo through the Rose City’s social media channels every winter. But actually, we do use salt! We’ve been using it just like any other city for the better part of a decade.

Our unheralded use of salt is one reason most major thoroughfares were actually pretty clear of ice by Tuesday or Wednesday of last week. Roughly 1,700 miles of Portland streets are designated as ice and snow routes based on their importance for hospitals and businesses or because they connect us to other jurisdictions, and the city always deices these as soon as it can.

But I don’t think you care about that. I think you’re just upset that the city didn’t immediately clear an unbroken path from your door to WingStop. And it’s true that the 3,000 or so miles of Portland streets NOT designated as snow routes (including my street and probably yours) don’t get cleared. The Portland Bureau of Transportation has 68 trucks that can spread salt or salt/gravel mix, which is just enough to do the snow routes.

We could get more, but how much do you really want to spend on something that’s only a problem three or four days a year, on average? And by the way, while you’re ragging on the authorities for their lack of preparation, how prepared are you? Because I got tire chains and ice cleats last year for about $60, I was pretty well able last week to go about my business. If Portland wants to beat the next ice storm, maybe it should follow my example. (Except for the part about working at Dominos. Don’t do that.)

Questions? Send them to dr.know@wweek.com.