Drivers heading to Mt. Bachelor and the Deschutes National Forest this weekend on Century Drive met slippery and dangerous conditions leading to crashes and pileups, with many on social media blaming the state agency that maintains the road for a lack of surface treatments.

The Oregon Department of Transportation faces a funding shortfall that could shrink resources for winter maintenance in Central Oregon without a transportation package from the Legislature in 2025.

But any related budget cuts wouldn’t impact the agency until next winter, and the highway was sanded as usual on Saturday.

“Our maintenance levels on Bachelor are steady and similar to last year,” Kacy Davey, a spokesperson for ODOT, said in an email on Monday. “We are still utilizing all our tools — deicer, sand and plows.”

“We generally sand hills, curves and intersections,” Davey added. “We do not sand every part of all highways during a winter storm.”

Davey said crews reported heavy traffic this weekend on Century Drive, also known as state Highway 372. Videos on social media showed vehicles sliding off the road and sideways into one another. Crashes closed the road for an hour-and-a-half on Saturday.

According to Davey, plows aren’t able to make as many passes on the road during times of heavy traffic. A plow may be able to pass the highway once every 30 minutes in normal traffic, but during busy times the interval could be an hour or longer, Davey said.

With snow piling up, ODOT urges drivers to slow down, give extra room for trucks, large vehicles and plows, and don’t pass sanders or snowplows.

“If you lose traction and your vehicle feels like it’s floating, gradually slow down,” the agency said in a recent news packet of winter driving tips. “Don’t slam on the brakes.”

The National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning early Monday that was expected to end Tuesday morning for the eastern slopes of the Cascades, forecasting 8 to 16 inches of snow accumulation, with periods of heavy snowfall and low visibility. After a break in precipitation on Monday, snow and rainfall was expected to pick back up for the afternoon and into the evening.