WYDOT District 2

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yvzJi3P8Y1Q

WYDOT Video Briefing 12-8 Snow, slick roads & black ice will impact sections of I-80 & roads across the west through the night. High winds return to several areas on Saturday night &...

Wind gusts as of 12:15 p.m.:

U.S. 20 at Van Tassell: 44 mph
I-25 at Bordeaux: 55 mph
I-25 at Hat Six: 50 mph
Casper Outer Drive: 57 mph
WYO 220 at Pathfinder Hill: 56 mph
U.S. 20/26 at Natrona: 52 mph

11 AM Update - Goshen County including Torrington as been upgraded to a High Wind Warning. Additionally, wind gusts up to 55 mph will be possible across the southern Nebraska Panhandle over the next few hours.

12/7 5 AM UPDATE - High Wind Warnings and Watches are in effect for portions of southeast Wyoming and western Nebraska. The wind prone areas could see gusts up to 75 MPH while other areas will see gusts 60 to 65 MPH. Use caution if traveling with light weight or high profiles vehicles!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqbqbpvzce0

WYDOT Video Briefing 12-6 High winds and expected closures to enclosed trailers under 40,000 GVW are back in the forecast for Thursday! Areas of snow and colder temperatures are also...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=00aZk-dya0I

PM Video Briefing 12 5 A video discussing weather and road impacts through Wednesday night, plus a preview of what's to come the rest of the week.

Know before you go, check wind information at www.wyoroad.info!

CASPER – Another overnight closure will affect Center Street near the Interstate 25 junction Monday, Dec. 4. The removal of old traffic signals and other hardware continues at the junction, this time on the south side of the interstate, at Center and E streets.

The southbound I-25 off ramp to Center Street will be closed as well as the northbound off ramp to Center. Additionally the intersection of the southbound off ramp and E Street at Center Street will be closed, although businesses on E Street east of Center will be accessible and governed by a flagger at the intersection.

The closure will begin at 10 p.m., Monday night and is expected to last until early Tuesday morning but no later than 7 a.m. Once the signals have been removed the intersection will become a four-way stop.

AMBER ALERT: 10 month old white male approximately 1'00", 20 lbs. Authorities are looking for suspect 48 year old white male, 5'11, 245 pounds with brown/grey hair and green eyes. Last seen driving a black 1995 Chevy Tahoe with Idaho license plate: 1T39349.

Call 9-1-1 if seen.

Reported: 5:15 a.m., Dec. 1.

CHEYENNE - The Wyoming Department of Transportation wants to remind motorists to use caution when driving around snowplows this winter season.

“We have already seen three snowplows hit in four days, a concerning trend as the winter season is just getting started,” said Tim Morton, maintenance engineer for District 1, which covers southeast Wyoming.

The plow strikes all took place in District 1, including on Interstate 80 near mile marker 274 Nov. 20 and near mile marker 386 Nov. 24, as well as on Interstate 25 near mile marker 23 on Nov. 24. Fortunately, no injuries were reported in any of the crashes. However, two of the crashes resulted in damaged plows.

“Plows that are damaged are in the shop rather than out on the highway clearing ice and snow,” Morton said.

In winters spanning 2014-2019, the agency averaged about eight plow hits per season. However in recent winters, strikes have spiked. The department saw 25 plows hit last winter, 18 in winter 2021/2022, a record-breaking 26 in winter 2020/2021, and 23 in winter 2019/2020.

Motorists are encouraged to give plows plenty of room to work. The road behind an active plow is freshly salted, sanded and plowed, which makes it safer. However, plows have to move slowly in order to be effective, which often means drivers will want to pass a plow.

“Snowplows create their own snow clouds, which can make visibility challenging,” Morton said. “Always wait until visibility is clear enough that you can safely maneuver to pass around the plow, especially if the wing plow is out.”

Drivers are also encouraged to drive according to conditions and to avoid driving distracted or impaired.

“We want everyone to get home safely ,” Morton said.

For the record, so far in this early winter season, District 2 has had no snow plows struck by motorists.

The earlier technical issues that affected WYDOT Driver Service offices statewide has been resolved and the offices are again operating as normal. If you have any questions please call your local office.

CASPER - Center Street underneath I-25 will be closed overnight, from 7 p.m., Monday, Nov. 27 until 7 a.m., Tuesday, Nov. 28 to allow for the removal of the traffic signals and hardware. This only affects the area underneath the interstate.

Access to neighborhoods and businesses will be via McKinley Street and F Street or by Center Street to E Street.

All highways within the district reporting slick spots, drifted snow with snowfall and strong winds. No unnecessary travel I-25 Glenrock south; black ice Casper north. No unnecessary travel also on WYO 59 from Douglas to the Campbell County line; U.S. 18/20 from I-25 to Lost Springs and U.S. 26 from I-25 to Guernsey. Black ice on WYO 259.

For the latest road and travel information statewide visit wyoroad.info anytime.

Snow moving into the Casper area and beginning to impact locations to the north and west of the city. Expect slick conditions with snowfall and limited visibility around town and on I-25 north to Buffalo and U.S. 20/26 to the Moneta area. Pic is I-25 at Tisdale or milepost 238.

FYI: We post information from both the National Weather Service offices in Cheyenne and in Riverton as WYDOT District 2 extends into both of their coverage areas.

Information on the greater Casper area and locations generally north and west are handled by the Riverton office while locations in the Cheyenne area - including Wheatland and Torrington areas are handled by the Cheyenne office.

Depending on your travel plans it's also useful to follow the NWS office in Rapid City or the one in Billings as they cover portions of Wyoming. A map of NWS offices and coverage areas is available on the National Weather Service website.

For our friends in the Douglas area:

The bridge crossing Antelope Creek on North 2nd Street will be closed from Monday, Nov. 27 through Thursday, Nov. 30 to allow investigative drilling and other work in preparation for a future bridge replacement project.

The closures will take place during the daylight hours beginning at 10 a.m. each day. Detours are posted. Please use Twin Bridges Road for access north of East Clay Street.

NWS Riverton echoing Cheyenne: Thursday looks to be the day for snow across the state. As the temps get colder and the snow starts to fly, it's a good time to make sure your vehicle is prepared - simple tasks such as checking the tread on your tires, as well as the air pressure, can help you weather our winters safely!

From NWS Cheyenne. Best chance for snow is, of course, on Thursday.

Check out the forecast for the next 5 days. Another quiet, warm day tomorrow before things start to cool down and get more active this weekend into next week.

Report of a cattle drive along WYO 220 between mileposts 86 - 90, in the Alcova area.

Expect delays, slow travel and of course, cattle! No time given as to how long the drive will use 220, but the report came out at 11:25 a.m.

We're already seeing wind gusts over 40 mph in the Casper area as well as the Bordeaux area south of Wheatland.

Several High Wind Watches and Warnings are in effect beginning this evening and continuing through Thursday night. Wind speeds of 60 to 65 mph will be possible at times. Those driving lightweight and high profile vehicles will need to be extra cautious especially on north-south oriented roadways. A Winter Weather Advisory is also in effect for the Sierra Madre mountains range until Thursday. 6 to 9 inches of snowfall will be possible in those mountains.

How often do we get a White Thanksgiving in Cheyenne? Over the last 70 years, we have had either snow falling or snow on the ground on Thanksgiving morning about 34% of the time (24 of 70 years). The last White Thanksgiving was 2019 when 8" of snow was still on the ground following a major snowstorm in the days before the holiday.

Even 2019 was no match for 1979 though, when a whopping 26" of snow was still on the ground following the historic blizzard just before Thanksgiving that year. The most snow to actually fall on Thanksgiving day was just 3.1" in 2015.

Have White Thanksgiving memories from 1979 or another year? Please share in the comments!

What about this year? It's too early to get into much detail, but there is a possibility for a cooler and wetter weather pattern next week to break our warm and dry streak that has dominated November so far.

Wondering if this also goes for that fake leather wrap with the holes in it? It had to be laced up after all.

NHTSA has issued a consumer alert: don't bling out your steering wheel!

"At least one driver suffered a serious injury that resulted in the loss of sight in one eye, when an aftermarket emblem adorned with rhinestones became dislodged from the steering wheel in a crash and hit the driver in the face."

More info: https://www.nhtsa.gov/press-releases/consumer-alert-steering-wheel-decorative-emblem-decals

CORRECTION - We told you yesterday that the signal at the intersection of East Yellowstone and Walsh Drive/Western Avenue in Casper was to be activated Oct. 30. The signal was activated yesterday afternoon in flash mode.

However, contrary to the initial report, it was decided to leave the signal in four-way stop mode, or flashing red for all directions.
Expect the signal to be fully activated within a week. In the meantime, treat the intersection as a four-way stop.

After an unseasonably bone-chilling weekend, a warmup is brewing for the upcoming week. Highs remain ghoul for today, but temperatures will warm come Halloween. Halloween looks gourd-geous with sunny and dry conditions across the Cowboy State. Have a fang-tastic Halloween!

Given the temps and snowfall expect slick areas throughout Casper. Snowfall also impacting areas west and north of town as well as WYO 59 and WYO 387. Web cameras are working again at wyoroad.info.

We're having some issues with the wyoroad.info interactive page - the camera layer button may not be functioning. As we sort this out, all of the camera views are available here:
https://wyoroad.info/highway/webcameras/webcameras.html

Snow continues to move northwest and has begun to impact I-25 as this picture at the divide, (milepost 267) north of Kaycee, shows. The band of snow that's impacting our area currently stretches from Buffalo to Rock Springs.

Here's the latest from NWS Riverton. Good chance that most of the state will receive at least 1 inch of snow by Friday morning while the mountain areas could see 6+ inches of snow.

Winds should pick up later today with possible gusts over 50 mph from the Kemmerer area to Casper and all areas south. The usual areas along I-80 are likely to see the strongest winds.

By early Friday morning expect temperatures to plummet to the low teens for much of our area though it's expected to warm up Sunday evening.

Now is a great time to make sure your vehicle is prepared for winter. Have you checked your antifreeze lately? Is your radiator full? Is it mixed properly to fully protect your engine? Antifreeze will break down over time and can actually cause damage to an engine. Some car manufacturers recommend changing the coolant every 20,000 - 30,000 miles.

As we see some of the first road closures of the season, WYDOT wants to issue some reminders about the Wyoming Travel Authorization Program:

✅ The W-TAP program helps drivers drive on sections of closed highways when authorities determine it's safe to do so. This can help folks get to work, school, tend to livestock, and other critically important tasks
❌This program does NOT give someone blanket authorization to travel on closed roads. Authorizations are giving on a storm-by-storm basis based on current and forecasted weather and road conditions
📱 Check the mileposts on the authorizations closely -- sometimes it's just a few miles out of town to help people get home or to livestock.
🔄 Returning users have to resubmit applicants every year. We recommend waiting until you receive your letter indicating your account is about to expire before logging in to resubmit information.
👮‍♀️ The Trooper/Law Enforcement Officer at the gate has the final say on whether travel beyond the gate is authorized.

Sign up and find out more on our website: https://w-tap.wyoroad.info/w-tap/

Winter weather creeping into Wyoming tomorrow through the weekend. Temperatures plummeting to below 20 degrees by early Friday in the Casper area, and to 16 degrees by school time in Kaycee.

Winds are expected to pick up throughout the state as well Wednesday afternoon with gusts in the Casper area of 40+ mph. Areas south and southwest of Casper likely to see the strongest wind.

Keep in the know on road conditions at wyoroad.info. You can get the latest weather information from the National Weather Service in Riverton at www.weather.gov/riw/

Big changes to our weather this week. Are you (and your vehicle) prepared?

WYO 220 - Report of a vehicle fire in the area of milepost 101. All lanes blocked. Expect delays. This is just north of the WYO 487 junction.

CASPER - Center Street (both directions) underneath I-25 will close Wednesday, Oct. 18. The closure is to allow for the removal of the northbound interstate bridge over Center Street. It is expected to last four days.

The intersection of F Street and Center Street will remain open and motorists will be able to access all businesses in the area, and be able to turn northbound onto Center Street from F Street.

Access the north Casper area vis Bryan Stock Trail or McKinley Street.

All highways within the district are generally in good shape. Most roads will be dry however keep an eye out for wet areas that may have become slick overnight.

Only closures are between Cheyenne and Rawlins. I-80 and U.S. 30 are closed. If you're traveling to Laramie this morning take I-25 to WYO 34.