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I happen to be visiting Stockholm this week. I don't know much about their snow-clearing practices, but I've been surprised by the amount of ice that is allowed

I happen to be visiting Stockholm this week. I don't know much about their snow-clearing practices, but I've been surprised by the amount of ice that is allowed to remain on roads and walkways. The sidewalks are in fair condition—though I slipped and totally wiped out this morning (not a common occurrence for me) when I was hurrying to enter a building. What really caught my attention is the thick layer of ice on roads, including at crosswalks. It's clear that they aren't using much road salt here, if any. I guess that is probably for environmental reasons.

tallanvor 5y ago
Sadly that seems to be the norm in Scandinavia. Oslo has the same problem (although they don't even try to prioritize sidewalks). They simply plow the bulk of the snow off the sidewalks and they might lay down gravel. It leaves significant slick spots and really you're just counting down the days until you take a tumble.
- Filligree 5y ago
  There are ways to walk on that without needing to worry. If you grow up in Scandinavia, at least in the north, you might go years without so much as slipping. On the other hand, if I had a dollar for the number of times I bruised myself as a child I'd be a rich man.
  - 988747 5y ago
    Can you share the trick? I'm slipping quite often these days :(
    - dalkvist 5y ago
      A quick workaround is to buy some spikes for your shoes. If you are in Scandinavia most outdoor and sport shops have them. Just remember to take then off then you go inside =)
    - Filligree 5y ago
      Get the spikes. I'm not sure there's any 'trick' that's learnable without growing up there. Essentially it's about walking without ever putting your feet down such that they apply lateral force to the ground, however. Do that right, and it doesn't matter how slippery it is. ...and then you also can't apply force, so you can't walk. The hard part is to automatically test the ground you're standing on, ramping up the force fast enough to make progress, without thereby slipping. It's so automatic, I can't explain how or why it works. I suspect it's getting done in the spinal column, even.
bestest 5y ago
Salt (and various substances alike) causes bad corrosion in vehicles. And quite often salt helps dissolve the snow yet what remains is a sludge, which in my opinion is much worse than a pedestrian path of packed snow. I wish more countries would choose the Scandinavian way of handling snow instead of just dumping tons of salt on the roads.
- veltas 5y ago
  And it's poisonous to dogs!
Jensson 5y ago
Salt doesn't keep roads ice free when it gets too cold, it works in warmer climates but in Sweden it gets cold enough that you will have ice patches anyway. They would stay a shorter period, but they would still be there, so cars still need winter tires so they can drive on ice anyway, so can just as well not put toxic salt on the roads. People who slip mostly just needs better shoes/tires, the difference between good and bad shoes/tires is huge. I have biked in Sweden during the winter, no problems at all, winter tires fixes most issues.
- cinntaile 5y ago
  Salt is definitely used in Sweden as well, just not everywhere.
yxhuvud 5y ago
The remains of the latest snowfall in Stockholm is worse than it usually is. Dunno how that happened, perhaps there was rain on cold streets and not just snow.

tallanvor 5y ago

Sadly that seems to be the norm in Scandinavia. Oslo has the same problem (although they don't even try to prioritize sidewalks). They simply plow the bulk of the snow off the sidewalks and they might lay down gravel. It leaves significant slick spots and really you're just counting down the days until you take a tumble.

Filligree 5y ago
There are ways to walk on that without needing to worry. If you grow up in Scandinavia, at least in the north, you might go years without so much as slipping. On the other hand, if I had a dollar for the number of times I bruised myself as a child I'd be a rich man.
- 988747 5y ago
  Can you share the trick? I'm slipping quite often these days :(
  - dalkvist 5y ago
    A quick workaround is to buy some spikes for your shoes. If you are in Scandinavia most outdoor and sport shops have them. Just remember to take then off then you go inside =)
  - Filligree 5y ago
    Get the spikes. I'm not sure there's any 'trick' that's learnable without growing up there. Essentially it's about walking without ever putting your feet down such that they apply lateral force to the ground, however. Do that right, and it doesn't matter how slippery it is. ...and then you also can't apply force, so you can't walk. The hard part is to automatically test the ground you're standing on, ramping up the force fast enough to make progress, without thereby slipping. It's so automatic, I can't explain how or why it works. I suspect it's getting done in the spinal column, even.

bestest 5y ago

Salt (and various substances alike) causes bad corrosion in vehicles. And quite often salt helps dissolve the snow yet what remains is a sludge, which in my opinion is much worse than a pedestrian path of packed snow. I wish more countries would choose the Scandinavian way of handling snow instead of just dumping tons of salt on the roads.

veltas 5y ago
And it's poisonous to dogs!

Jensson 5y ago

Salt doesn't keep roads ice free when it gets too cold, it works in warmer climates but in Sweden it gets cold enough that you will have ice patches anyway. They would stay a shorter period, but they would still be there, so cars still need winter tires so they can drive on ice anyway, so can just as well not put toxic salt on the roads. People who slip mostly just needs better shoes/tires, the difference between good and bad shoes/tires is huge. I have biked in Sweden during the winter, no problems at all, winter tires fixes most issues.

cinntaile 5y ago
Salt is definitely used in Sweden as well, just not everywhere.

yxhuvud 5y ago

The remains of the latest snowfall in Stockholm is worse than it usually is. Dunno how that happened, perhaps there was rain on cold streets and not just snow.