Old Man Winter and Mother Nature continue a tug-of-war resulting in a winter that just won’t seem to quit.
With a chance of flurries or rain showers in the forecast for every day this coming weekend and lows predicted of -5C at night, most of us will not be rushing to put away our winter woolies any time soon.
This week the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure announced it will be making some changes to improve safety on B.C. highways in the future after our “intense” winter.
Changes announced include stricter commercial vehicle chain-up requirements and higher fines for commercial vehicles not carrying chains, or not chaining up when required.
The ministry promised road-maintenance contractors will be monitored and audited, while new tools and technology such as road weather stations, variable speed limit systems and GPS tracking snow plows will be implemented.
Additionally, winter tire and chain regulations on select highways, including mountain passes and rural routes in high snowfall areas, will be extended from Oct. 1 to April 30 instead of March 31 to account for early-spring snowfalls.
Taking to social media, many people have bemoaned the lingering days of winter on Easter and into April by posting humorous captions.
Whether it was “Happy White Easter,” or “We have a new season … Sprinter — Winter in Spring,” or “It’s like winter is really mad and keeps storming out of the room and then coming back yelling, ‘And another thing!” The comments did warm the heart while toes remained chilled.
Most of our lake is still covered in ice and one wonders what the birds and geese are thinking when it’s 8C one day and -3C the next.
It’s difficult to complain considering last summer’s wildfires and the hope a slow melt will help in 2018, but maybe if we ask nicely, OMW and MN will come to a peaceful compromise?