Lawrence snowfall under an inch, area highways slick on New Year’s Eve

Less than an inch of snow fell on Lawrence Monday, through area roads and highways did get sloppy in the evening.

It will be the area’s last opportunity for significant precipitation for at least a week, the National Weather Service reports, and the impact on Lawrence appeared minimal Monday night. The NWS’ winter weather advisory should be lifted by 6 a.m. Tuesday.

City crews began salting and laying sand in Lawrence streets Monday morning, and those remained largely clear into the night. From noon to midnight, Lawrence police responded to about six motorists in need of assistance and a dozen accidents, none involving life-threatening injuries.

Highways in the area grew more treacherous from the afternoon to evening. The Kansas Department of Transportation showed Interstate 70 snow-packed from Topeka to Lawrence after 3 p.m. Kansas Highway 10 and U.S. Highway 59 were in the same condition by 8 p.m. Law enforcement responded to several incidents of vehicles sliding off of roads in Douglas, Franklin, and Jefferson counties.

The NWS forecasts the snowfall will have passed Tuesday, and Lawrence can expect a high of 27 degrees in the day and a low of 11 at night.