VEHICLE CRASHES AFTER DE-ICER MAKES ROAD SLICK

Gazette, The (Colorado Springs), Feb 5, 2008 by JENNIFER WILSON

Colorado Springs officials are trying to figure out why anti-ice chemicals meant to make roads safer instead turned at least one of them slippery Monday.

A quarter-mile of Austin Bluffs Parkway east of Union Boulevard became slick a few hours after crews applied deicing liquid to 20 miles of dry city roads in anticipation of a snowstorm, said Bard Lower of the city's streets division.

"We're doing a full investigation into what happened," he said.

Meanwhile, the city won't use the de-icer, Lower said.

The only reported problem was along the short stretch of Austin Bluffs.

"There's 193/4 miles that's working exactly like it's supposed to," Lower said. "In general, it's working perfect."

Colorado Springs police reported one crash on the slick area -- a rollover with no injuries, Sgt. Carlos Montoya said.

Crews applied sand to the area after the crash.

A similar incident happened in November in El Paso County, when de-icer applied before a storm created slippery conditions.

In that instance, officials determined the chemical drew moisture out of the air as the humidity jumped from 20 percent to 80 percent, said John McCarty, county transportation director.

"Then we got a front going through that cooled the temperature down and caused it to freeze," McCarty said.

The county uses calcium chloride, and the city uses a mixture of magnesium chloride, Lower said.

The city's de-icer, called Caliber, is distributed by EnviroTech Services of Denver, Lower said. It costs 72 cents per gallon, and the city has about 6,000 gallons on hand.

EnviroTech trainer and salesman Mike Hern, who's investigating Monday's incident, said Caliber can also make newly built roads slick. On roads with normal wear and tear, it soaks into the road's pores, he said, but new asphalt has a layer of oil on top -- keeping the de-icer from sinking in.

Construction crews are building roads at Austin Bluffs and Union for the intersection's new overpass.

The Colorado Department of Transportation uses Caliber on some state roads near Castle Rock, Greeley and Grand Junction, spokesman Bob Wilson said. It uses other forms of magnesium chloride elsewhere, he said.

But CDOT crews never spray de-icer before the snow falls, Wilson said.