The ice build-up on the roads in Pa. was in inches and everything was closed, even the shopping malls. They had rolling blackouts in Pa. because of the extremely cold weather. The closest place to get a bite was across the street from the Super 8 motel I was staying in. It's now a WaWa Gas station. And because of the power blackouts, you couldn't get any hot food, so I had to settle for a sandwich.
My old VW Jetta wouldn't start because of the cold, and when I called AAA about getting a jump, they asked me where I thought I'd be going since Route 81 was closed due to the ice storm and jack-knifed tractor trailers. At the time I had a cast on my left wrist, having broken it after slipping and falling on black ice back home in central NY State. I had an appointment to get the cast off that Friday. Fortunately, the roads eventually opened, and I was able to get out in time to get back home and get the cast off.
It wasn't one of my better trips. For a woman with money in her pocket, to be stuck in a city where the shopping malls are closed is a nightmare. I actually ended up having to replace the tires on my car because they were worn down from having to drive for so many miles over the rutted and rippled ice through Pa.
“It’s one of the worst roads to drive on since they don’t use salt to keep the roads clear.”
That statement is not accurate. Sitting in traffic near a Penn Dot station, I watched as trucks came and loaded with salt for some time yesterday.
PennDOT used to use salt; they now use a liquid (magnesium?) and I think they also continue to use salt as well. Last year, they had a situation similar to yours, and a lot of people raised a lot of hell after being stranded during a storm. Fast Eddy Rendell lit a fire under PennDOT, and there are now a multitude of plows on the interstates whenever there is a HINT of snow or ice....