Road brine uses up to 72% less salt on our roadways

A recent university-led research project shows salt brine used between 40% to 72% less salt than traditional rock salt. Salt brine is a mixture of granular salt and water used to keep roads clear before or during winter weather. WisDOT Secretary Kristina Boardman said, “This Clear Roads project provides valuable data that confirms what our teams and county partners have observed for years – salt brine is an effective tool to improve safety on our roads, reduce material use and environmental impact and optimize available resources.”

Field testing evaluated operational and safety performance on parallel routes in two Wisconsin counties. Salt brine was applied in one direction and traditional granular rock-salt was applied in the opposite direction with friction data collected during winter storms. Results showed nearly equal road performance between the salt brine and rock salt highway sections.  

The research project was led by the Traffic Operations and Safety Laboratory (TOPS Lab) at UW-Madison. The research study involved literature review, and field data collection and evaluation.

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