Department of Transportation
For immediate release: January 17, 2002
For more information: John Forman 773-5155, Kim Nelson 773-5103

Department of Transportation Encourages Use of Road Condition Reports

PIERRE, SD - - This winter has been exceptionally mild, but driving can still prove to be challenging on South Dakota highways. Slight precipitation and winds can turn dry roads into a headache for motorists. However, information is available that can take some of the worry out of traveling.

One tool that the South Dakota Department of Transportation urges travelers to use is their on-line winter road condition report. By subscribing to the mailing list, which is free of cost, users are automatically sent statewide road condition reports three times daily. The Department updates the information every day at approximately 7:30 a.m., 11:30 a.m., and 4:30 p.m. Report information includes a summary, by region, of visibility, precipitation, and roadway surface conditions. To subscribe to the service, go to the Department’s web site, www.SDDOT.com. 

Travelers can also call any of the following phone numbers for road condition information: Sioux Falls - 367-5707; Aberdeen - 626-2282; Rapid City - 394-2255; and Pierre - 605-773-7515.

"The DOT realizes the importance of making good road condition information available to the traveling public, and we are continually trying to improve the product we provide," said John Forman, Construction/Maintenance Engineer for the Department of Transportation. 

Another source of information that Forman would like to make motorists aware of is a program called #SAFE. Up-to-date location-specific road condition information for over 27,000 miles of highways in South Dakota, North Dakota, and Minnesota can be accessed by dialing #SAFE (#7233) on any cellular phone or (701) 777-6133 on a regular phone. After answering four questions about location and direction of travel, callers are provided a road condition report and short-range weather forecast. The phone call takes an average of 1 1/2 minutes. Toll charges may apply depending on the user’s service provider.

Forman added, "We feel these are useful tools for people making travel plans or in the midst of a trip, but we find many people do not know about them." Questions about the road conditions report or #SAFE can be directed to Forman at 773-5155.