Road crews prepare for possible ice on New Year's Eve

It was the calm before the storm Friday morning at the TX DOT maintenance yard on Palmer Lane. They have hundreds of bags of chemical deicer on hand.

TX DOT spokesman Chris Bishop also tells FOX 7 the equipment that will spread out the deicer is ready to be hooked up to a fleet of trucks.

"We have everyone split into the correct split shifts, so as we need them we can call them in, we have stock piles in, more stuff has been ordered as needed, and the equipment has been checked out, if it’s not working its being in final repairs, and if it is working its ready to go. We are about as ready as we can be until we see what mother nature is going to do,” said Bishop.

TX DOT started pre-treating roads Thursday night.

In Dallas, road crews were spotted sprinting up and down major highways.

In Austin, the big focus was on elevated sections that usually are the first to ice over.

Pre-treating three days ahead of any forecasted wet weather seems a little early but according to Bishop most crew members have Friday off and there were concerns about disrupting holiday traffic. "Thursday has less traffic, than a Friday and Saturday normally, plus it being a holiday season weekend with new year's coming up, we knew they would be more people on the road, so we were able to pre-treat Thursday night and as long as there is not a significant weather event, and wash that pretreatment away, it will still be there when the unfortunate might happen for us come Sunday night,” said Bishop.

If the area is hit hard with snow and ice, spot treatments will be done.

The concern is not limited to what ends up on the roads but what will happen under them.

Extreme fluctuations in temperature are not kind to water lines.

An incident in North Austin a few weeks ago was the most recent big break.

To address any that may pop up over the next few days, Austin Water spokesperson Richelle Brown tells FOX 7 crews have already been placed on stand-by. "We are well prepared, and our equipment is pre-positioned to handle any type of issues that may arise, however is something does come up we encourage people to call our 24-hour hotline, which is 512-972-1000,” said Brown.

Late Friday night, crews with the City of Austin will also start getting ready. Chemicals are not used, but trucks are being loaded up with sand and gravel to be used on problem spots.

Homeowners are also urged to take time to plan ahead. "Wrap water pipes that are outside of homes, open cabinets that are adjacent to outside walls, as well as if you are able to keep houses at warm temperatures to prevent things from freezing,” said Brown.

If you are expected to be on the roadway Sunday and Monday, check your fluids and tire pressure.