At least 170 collisions reported in Waterloo Region Friday
Slippery road conditions and snow squalls have caused at least 170 accidents in Waterloo Region, according to Waterloo Regional Police Service and the Ontario Provincial Police.
Waterloo Regional police report 94 vehicle collisions with damage to vehicles and 10 collisions with injuries on regional roads and city streets between 5 a.m. and 9:45 a.m. on Friday. In total, there were 104 collisions in the morning.
Meanwhile, OPP Sgt. Kerry Schmidt said there were about 70 collisions from 5 a.m to 9:50 a.m. on provincial highways in the Cambridge and Kitchener area alone.
According Schmidt, the Highway 401 westbound lanes at Homer Watson Boulevard were reopened as of around 9:30 a.m., but traffic is slow in the area.
Police are warning drivers to take more time driving this morning and be careful.
"The best thing is for all drivers, no matter where they're travelling, is to expect conditions to be slippery," said Waterloo Regional police spokesman Olaf Heinzel. "Treat every intersection as slippery until they're satisfied it's not."
Heinzel said it's common for ice to redevelop after road salting crews have been out, so it's hard to predict where roads will have good traction on days with snow squalls and warmer temperatures.
Drivers should leave more space when following vehicles, make sure their actions are predictable, and give other drivers more time to react to sudden lane changes or stops, said Heinzel. Rear-end collisions are the most common in the region, so drivers should double their following distance today, he said.