Low traffic volume keeps accidents down

DEM Blogger

January 22, 2016

Mayor Jim Gray today thanked citizens for staying off the roads today.

“The lower traffic volume has really helped us reduce the number of injury accidents,” Gray said. Police have responded to 2 injury and 34 non-injury collisions since midnight.

This snow storm hit us pretty hard today, the Mayor said. “At times we’ve experienced near white-out conditions, but we’re fighting back. Our road crews are out non-stop and we’re responding to individual concerns, as needed.” LexCall 311 has taken 454 calls since 8 a.m.

STREETS AND ROADS

The heavy, unrelenting snow fall has made it difficult to keep roads clear. Road crews and contractors are out salting and plowing Lexington’s most heavily used streets.

Be aware that cold temperatures, like those we are experiencing, make the chemicals used to clear streets less effective.

Citizens are encouraged to avoid parking on the city’s Snow Emergency Routes so roads can be cleared faster. The routes are marked by street signs. (Map available atwww.lexingtonky.gov)

Free parking in city garages downtown continues through midnight Sunday. City garages are the Helix on Main; the Transit Center on Vine; the Courthouse Garage on Barr Street; and Victorian Square Garage, off Short Street.

LEXTRAN SUSPENDS FRIDAY NIGHT SERVICE

Lextran is suspending Friday night bus service due to severe weather conditions. The last departure from the downtown Transit Center will occur at 8:10 p.m. As temperatures drop and weather conditions worsen, decreased visibility is expected and Lextran is suspending service early with passenger safety in mind. Staff will remain available until 9:30 p.m. to assist stranded passengers in smaller vans and support vehicles.

Stranded passengers should call Lextran at (859) 255-7756 for assistance and be ready to provide their location.

Lextran will operate Snow Plan service on a 1-hour delay Saturday morning, with the first outbound departure from the Transit Center at 7:20 a.m. Snow plan information can be found by visiting: http://www.lextran.com/snow-plan-stops .

Passengers can access the most up-to-date information on bus service by visitinglextran.com, following us on Facebook and Twitter, or calling our Customer Service Center at 253-4636 between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m., Monday through Friday.

COMMUNITY CORRECTIONS VISITATION CANCELED

Due to the severe winter weather and the threat of significant accumulations of snow today and Saturday, Jan. 23, visitation has been canceled at the Division of Community Corrections. As weather permits visitation will resume.

LexCall 311 EXTENDED HOURS

Extended hours for LexCall 311 (425-2255) continue. Citizens should call 311 for assistance. Call 911 only in the case of life threatening emergencies. LexCall will operate on a 24-hour basis until the snow storm ends.

EMERGENCY OPERATIONS CENTER

The City’s Emergency Operations Center continues to operate on a 24-hour basis. The Center will remain open through the duration of the storm. Call LexCall 311 to call the Center.

HOMELESS SHELTERS

Lexington has responded to care for our citizens who are homeless. Shelters are busy, but handling the increased need and have received an outpouring of food, clothing, and other donations. The Catholic Action Center’s ColdLine is still accepting calls and texts at 859-913-0038. Volunteers are responding to reports of people in need of shelter, as road conditions allow. The Office of Homelessness Winter Weather Plan remains in effect through at least Sunday.

FIRE

Firefighters offered safety tips: keep anything that can burn 3 feet away from heating sources such as furnaces, fireplace, portable space heater; do not use your stove as a heating source; do not use your fireplace unless it has recently been inspected and cleaned; know where your water shut off is in case of burst pipes; if you shovel snow, please do not over exert yourself and make sure you are layered properly covering your extremities.

KENTUCKY UTILITIES

Kentucky Utilities customers experiencing outage can check the outage map at www.lge-ku.com/storm.

For more information go to www.lexingtonky.gov and click on “Snow Impact 2016.”