Sleet, snow made Kansas City roads slick for morning commute

A wave of sleet and snow moved through the Kansas City metropolitan area, making the roads a wet, slick mess for Wednesday morning’s commute.

The good news was that the wintry mix was expected to be short lived and that as the morning progressed, temperatures were expected to warm. The precipitation was expected to change over to all rain for the rest of Wednesday, according to the National Weather Service in Pleasant Hill, Mo.

In the meantime, the Missouri and Kansas departments of transportation were urging drivers to take it slow and to give highway crews room to treat the roadways.

The Clay County Sheriff Department said at 8:30 a.m. that it was assisting the Missouri Highway Patrol with a crash involving an ambulance at Missouri 92 and Route RA near Excelsior Springs. Missouri 92 was closed because of the injury crash.

The Clay County Sheriff warned drivers that southbound Interstate 35 north of Missouri 291 was slow going and that roads were slick. Deputies were working slide-offs and urged drivers to take it slow and allow extra time.

Slide-offs were being reported across the metropolitan area. Several crashes were being reported along Interstate 435 across the southern part of the Kansas City area.

Meanwhile, highway speeds were in the 30 to 40 mph range across parts of the metro.

Kansas City Police Chief Darryl Forté also urged drivers to be careful.

Kansas City, Kan., Police Chief Terry Zeigler echoed that advice.

Police also reported several thefts as people were warming up their vehicles. Forté urged drivers not to leave their vehicles unattended with their keys inside.

Overland Park police were reporting icy conditions and that multiple crashes were reported before 7:30 a.m. Wednesday.

Kansas City announced Tuesday that because of the chance of a light clacing of ice, crews had applied brine on the streets. Bridge frost crews deployed early Wednesday morning to apply additional treatments to elevated surfaces.

Kansas City asked residents, business and organizations to clear sidewalks to help pedestrians get to school, work and home.

The Kansas City Area Transportation Authority announced its Share-A-Fare paratransit is running its Phase A plan, which means delays of 30 to 60 minutes are possible.

Most buses were running on schedule Wednesday morning, however, a few routes had delays of 5 to 6 minutes.

This story was originally published January 6, 2016 at 7:24 AM with the headline "Sleet, snow made Kansas City roads slick for morning commute."