POTTSTOWN PA – To keep readers up-to-speed on weather developments involving this weekend’s (Feb. 16-17, 2024) winter storm, Travels With The Post will post news items on its local impact as they become available.
Declared Snow Emergency Expirations Due Saturday
Saturday, 8:23 p.m.
Three area municipalities – Spring City, Collegeville, and Lower Salford – took the advance step Friday of declaring snow emergencies, as provided by their laws. Most declarations require, at a minimum, that vehicles be removed from public streets so plow operators can ensure snow is safely removed.
Philadelphia’s 6ABC-TV reported Collegeville’s snow emergency began Friday at 10 p.m. and was intended to end Saturday at 10 a.m. The Lower Salford declaration was framed for Saturday only, from 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. Spring City made its declaration Friday at 9 p.m., and continued it through Saturday at noon.
Travels With The Post has not yet received any notices that emergency declarations have been lifted. They may simply be allowed to expire.
PART Buses Delay Route Starts to 10 a.m.
Saturday, 8 a.m.
POTTSTOWN PA – Pottstown Area Rapid Transit reported its Saturday bus and other transit vehicles schedule would not begin Saturday until 10 a.m. Depending on which of five lines its riders take, schedules normally start between 6 and 6:30 a.m. A copy of PART’s regular schedules (as of October 2023) for all routes is available online.
The Saturday starts were announced Friday at 5:20 p.m. in anticipation of weather forecasts.
Lighter in Some Spots, Far Heavier in Others
Saturday, 6:33 a.m.
POTTSTOWN PA – Snowfall so far, determined by ruler measurement, is between 1-1/2 and 3 inches across parts of Lower Pottsgrove Township, near the 2-4 inches that the National Weather Service predicted Friday night (Feb. 16). In greater Pottstown, snow continues to fall as this is being written at 6:33 a.m. It’s consistency seems to be light and fluffy, far less water-laden than last week’s accumulation.
Some areas endured far-greater accumulations. Philadelphia-based 6ABC-TV is reporting Pennsburg, Montgomery County, picked up 5 inches of snow; and Lyons PA, 15 miles north of Boyertown in Berks County, was hit with 12 inches.
State-maintained streets though Pottstown appear wet but easily navigated. However, temperatures are expected to drop as the day progresses, potentially making roadways icier.
PennDOT Ends Three Weather-Related Regional Speed Limits
Saturday (Feb. 17), 6:11 a.m.
KING OF PRUSSIA PA – Restrictions that reduced traffic speed to a maximum of 45 miles per hour on Routes 30 and 202 in Chester County, and on Route 309 in Bucks County, were ended by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation on Saturday at 6:11 a.m.
The department pledged to “continue to treat roadways throughout the storm until precipitation stops and roads are clear.”
They had been imposed only hours earlier, at 2:32 a.m. At the time, PennDOT said the change was necessary “due to the severity of the winter storm.”
Even earlier, at 1:02 a.m., PennDOT’s Allentown-based District 5 office imposed a 45-mph limit on Interstate 78 in Berks, Lehigh, and Northampton counties. Added: It was removed at 9:55 a.m..
Winter Weather Advisory Posted for Western Montgomery County
Friday (Feb. 16) at 7:59 p.m.
MOUNT HOLLY NJ – A winter weather advisory that takes effect Friday (Feb. 16, 2024) at 10 p.m. has been declared by the National Weather Service in western Montgomery County. It specifically includes the riverside boroughs of Pottstown and Collegeville.
The Philadelphia regional weather service office in Mount Holly said county residents and businesses could expect a total snow accumulation of between 2 and 4 inches, and in some locations up to 5 inches. “Snow or sleet accumulations may result in significant travel disruptions,” its forecasters reported. Travelers, they said, should “plan on slippery road conditions.
The advisory is anticipated to remain in place until Saturday (Feb. 17) at 10 p.m.
The storm could be most ominous before the dawn, according to the service. “Snow may briefly become heavy late (Friday) before tapering off early Saturday,” it noted. “Slow down and use caution while traveling” during earliest morning hours, it also urged.
The county’s western half is just a small portion of a wide swath of area the storm is expected to hit. The weather service said its advisory also covers, in Pennsylvania, Berks, Carbon, Monroe, Lehigh, Northampton, and Upper Bucks counties. Residential areas including Jim Thorpe, Stroudsburg, Reading, Allentown, Bethlehem, Easton, Chalfont, and Perkasie also were specifically named.
So, too, in New Jersey were Warren, Hunterdon, Somerset, Middlesex, western and eastern Monmouth, Mercer, and Ocean counties; as well as the Jersey cities of Washington, Flemington, Somerville, New Brunswick, Freehold, Sandy Hook, Trenton, Jackson, and Long Beach Island.
There also is a bit of good news,” the service concluded. From roughly mid-day “Saturday through Thursday (Feb. 17-22), it stated, “the probability for widespread hazardous weather is low.”
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