MoDot says you should stay home tomorrow

Its highly unusual, but the Missouri Department of Transportation thinks your boss should let you stay home tomorrow.

The department “urges employers to consider allowing their employees to work from home or forego coming into work on Tuesday for their employees’ safety as well as keeping highways clear for snowplows to do their job during the peak of the storm,” it just said in a press release.

“This storm is forecast to shape up much like the heavy snow we faced nearly a year ago,” said MoDOT District Engineer Dan Niec. “Many employers sent their workers home early, once they realized how heavy the snow was falling. That crush of traffic during midday, in the middle of our efforts, clogged highways, interstates and interchanges and resulted in bringing our snow fighting efforts to a standstill for hours at a time at key points in our highway system.”

Niec said that this highly unusual strategy will be safer for motorists and keep snowplows moving at a steady pace during the height of the storm, clearing the highways as soon as possible.

MoDot says the forecast also includes wind gusts of up to 35 miles per hour, which will quickly create drifting conditions within minutes after plows have cleared a highway. The wind and low temperatures will produce sub-zero wind chills through Thursday.