On 01 Jan 70 00:00, Mark Hofmann wrote to Roy Witt:   
      
      
      
    RW>> As a side note, when I was a lad just starting to drive, the city   
    RW>> used coal to heat the jail, police station, city hall, fire stations   
    RW>> and court house. The street department would collect the ashes and   
    RW>> cinders and spread those on the streets during and after a snow. No   
    RW>> melted snow, but traction provided by the coal ashes. That was a   
    RW>> dirty deal until after the spring rains carried it away, but a whole   
    RW>> lot easier on the cars and trucks of the day. And grass grew on the   
    RW>> roadsides in spite of the extra dirt the ashes provided.   
      
    MH> Don't know why we got away from using coal ashes.  The only exception   
    MH> would be if we had freezing rain.   
      
   Even freezing rain didn't reduce the traction on ashes enough to worry   
   about it. I do recall sliding into the back of a VW bug with a 98 Olds,   
   but that was on a street that hadn't been treated with ashes yet.   
      
    MH> I'm not 100% certain, but think really cold places like Alaska use   
    MH> sand and things like that since salt won't work well at very low   
    MH> temps.   
      
   I think you're right.   
      
               R\%/itt   
      
      
      NASCAR - Everything else is JUST a game? AHRA? IHRA? NHRA? INDY? F1?   
      
      
   --- Hate Mongers and Morons, get your coffee and keyboards ready!   
    * Origin: Texas Lone-Star - Texan, American, USAian  (1:387/22)