During the night of yesterday, a heavy snowstorm moved in over Sweden. SMHI had issued an orange warning for heavy snowfall in combination with wind, and already early in the morning tens of thousands of households in central Sweden were without power. During the morning, the snow storm was also noticeable in the traffic.
The roads came to a standstill and road users were stuck for hours when neither plows nor tow trucks could get past the queues. Now the Swedish Transport Administration is receiving harsh criticism.
– The weather warnings go out, but the Swedish Transport Administration still waits far too long to take measures so that there is time to stop. It will be a social disruption, says Ulric Långberg, head of social policy at Sweden’s Åkeriföretat.
He believes that the Swedish Transport Administration should step in proactively and close roads where there is a risk of traffic jams.
– If there is now an orange weather warning, you have to be able to work the back way and make sure that the cars are not on those roads.
Today 10:42
The truck driver Karl-Erik was stuck in the traffic chaos: “Be a little snooty”
Need a fortune teller
But the Swedish Transport Administration rejects the criticism.
– We were out with everything we had, but we can’t start plowing until we know where it is needed. It can be several miles apart. In that case, we have to find a fortune teller that can tell us exactly where the snow will land, says press manager Bengt Olsson.
Last Monday at 6 p.m., the Swedish Transport Administration held meetings with the contractors who manage the ploughing. The authority has also held cooperation meetings with the police and rescue services so that they can pilot plow and recovery trucks. But when the traffic gets stuck, it’s impossible to get there, says Bengt Olsson.
– Such an extreme impact as we saw in Skaraborg, with 70 centimeters of snow and strong winds, it is impossible to prepare for. We can’t get past lorries.
New snowstorm on the way
Bengt Olsson believes that the Swedish Transport Administration is equipped to handle normal conditions, but that it would be unsustainable to have plow trucks ready for extreme conditions. Ulric Långberg does not agree with that.
– Let’s face it, you don’t have the resources to deal with a normal winter.
Early tomorrow morning, a new snow storm moves in over Sweden. SMHI has issued a yellow warning for northwestern Götaland and warns, among other things, of slippage, snow slush and poor visibility.
– Hopefully it will be a little easier to handle this. We’ll see what happens, but we’re prepared for it, says Bengt Olsson.