Comparison between last two winters is startling

What a difference a year makes when it comes to the severity of a winter season.

While it may be too early to raise the “Mission Accomplished” flag proclaiming we’re done with snow for the winter — last year, the final snow event in Wright County was April 16-17 — it appears as though spring has pushed winter out the door for 2024.

The Wright County Highway Department recently compiled data that shows just how rare both of the last two winter seasons have been — at both ends of the spectrum.

While the winter of 2022-23 was one of Minnesota’s snowiest on record, this past season was one of the mildest in recent memory.

The comparison is startling when one looks at the difference in snow events, snow totals, salt/de-icer totals, equipment and manpower.

The winter of 2022-23 dropped a heavy amount of snow, with totals at 90.3 inches in the Twin Cities and 88.2 inches in St. Cloud. This winter pales in comparison, with 29.5 inches in the Twin Cities and 31.9 inches in St. Cloud.

Last winter saw 84 days of working with snow and ice events, versus 26 this winter.

In 2022-23, crews worked a total of 12,522 labor hours; while this winter, that dropped to 4,219.

Last winter saw the consumption of a massive amount of premium de-icer, with 121,064 gallons used, versus just 7,436 gallons this year.

The same could be said for salt, with 13,517 tons used in 2022-23, versus just under 5,000 tons this winter.

The winter of 2022-23 saw 122,351 miles of road treated, while there were 37,871 miles of road treated in 2023-24.

Crews also got to sleep in a bit more this year, with just 12 early-call days, starting at 2 a.m. on weekdays, versus 36 last winter.