Snow and ice aren’t the only things in the way of plow drivers.
The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) says aggressive drivers are also at the top of the list.
“Back away, give them space to do their work,” said Aisha Dayal, a WSDOT spokesperson.
When you see snowplows, remember that they’re here to help, not hurt, your morning commute.
“They have to go at a slower rate so they don’t spread the product everywhere and get it all over the lanes,” she said.
Dayal says to think of these plows as mobile work zones. She says crews are working around the clock treating the roads to prevent cars from slipping and sliding.
“We have some priority plow routes that we handle, which include a lot of interstates and those big interchanges that get used quite frequently,” Dayal said.
The constant clean-ups also helped to avoid another traffic nightmare that overtook I-405 on Tuesday.
Troopers said that at least seven crashes were caused by ice on the roadway. It shut down some southbound lanes, right after a fiery crash involving a semi-truck closed the freeway near Sunset Blvd Northeast.
But Dayal says one of their biggest setbacks has always been aggressive drivers.
“They hit our plow drivers and our plow trucks. That’s happened way too often. And it happens every year. And not only is that not safe for the traveling public, not safe for our crews, but it also takes that truck out of commission.”
She says impatience puts their drivers, and anyone around them, in a dangerous position.
“Passing them aggressively, maybe honking at them, trying to, you know, try to get them to pull over and engage in that,” she added. “Our crews can’t do that, you know, we can’t pull over and that also just takes away from doing the work as well.”
Dayal says drivers can avoid that by planning and leaving with enough time for delays. When you’re on the road, make sure you’re paying attention and keep a distance from plow drivers!
“If you’re really close to them, they’re not able to see you, and so they might have to do some maneuvers sometimes to avoid anything in the roadway, or to get around some guardrail when they’re plowing or putting down treatment and products,” Dayal said.
©2025 Cox Media Group
