If there’s snow again this fall and winter, the city is taking steps to ensure Excelsior Springs’ streets will be drivable, Chad Birdsong told city leaders Aug. 12 at the Hall of Waters.

Birdsong, city public works director, announced during a city government work session that Excelsior Springs should receive salt for street treatment within “the next couple weeks.” As of the work session, the city was soliciting bids through collective bidding with Clay County, Liberty and Gladstone, he said.

“Gladstone kind of heads that up,” Birdsong said, adding that the bidding process had begun that week.

In other winter-related news, Birdsong said the city was aiming to quadruple its storage capacity for sand and salt. The target amount, 400 tons, “should definitely help” with street treatment, he said.

Ideally, a 1-to-1 ratio of sand to salt is best when mixing material for street treatment, according to Birdsong. Alas, that isn’t always possible if there are more than 10 cold-weather storms during a fall/ winter period, he suggested.

When the number of storms during the cold-weather months reaches the teens, the ratio becomes 2-to-1, or sometimes 3-to-1, Birdsong said. When the ratio of sand is double or triple that of salt, “sand slicks on all the hills” is the result, he said.

“It helps for a little bit of traction, but … you’re not getting the melting effect,” Birdsong said.

At 400 tons of storage, the city should have an ample amount of treatment material for bridges and streets, Birdsong said.