Jackson Mayor Scott Conger issued a statement on social media comparing road conditions in Madison County to other counties during the winter storm.
There have been a number of posts on social media over the past few days comparing roads in Madison County to those in Chester, Gibson and McNairy counties, particularly regarding the lack of snow on roads in other counties.
Conger said winter storm ferns have two components: snow and ice, which results in significantly different road conditions.
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“Madison County is within the ice belt,” Conger said. “We had snow and sleet followed by 1/4 to 1/2 inch of freezing rain, and ice was nearly 1 inch thick in some areas nearby. This ice was stuck right to the sidewalk. It turned the roads into glass. You can’t plow the ice, and salt has little effect when the temperatures stay this cold and the skies stay cloudy.”
He added that Chester, Gibson and McNairy counties had more snowfall and less freezing rain, noting that ice cannot be pushed off roadways like snow.
He thinks roads clear faster in those counties because plows can shovel snow, salt can soak in, pavement warms faster and the sun helps melt snow.
Cars drive through the intersection of Campbell Street and North Avenue during snowfall on Saturday, January 24, 2026, in Jackson, Tennessee.
Instead, he said the situation in Jackson didn’t clear up in the same way because of several variables: ice sealed the sidewalk; salt couldn’t penetrate; the sidewalk never warmed; each new layer of ice refrozen on top of the previous layer; overcast skies inhibited its ability to melt; and hills, curves and bridges remained icy.
“There’s another difference that people overlook: scale,” he said. “The City of Jackson is responsible for approximately 1,300 lane miles of roadway. Surrounding counties have far fewer city roads to treat and maintain.”
Conger said fewer roads in neighboring counties means fewer intersections, hills, bridges, trouble spots and less traffic grinding ice into the pavement, allowing them to cover their systems faster.
“They can cover their systems faster. Jackson can’t, even with a full staff working around the clock,” he said.
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Sarah Best is a reporter for The Jackson Sun. To support local journalism, subscribe to the daily newsletter at jacksonsun.com.
This article originally appeared in The Jackson Sun: Jackson mayor addresses misconceptions about clearing roads of snow, ice
