New Jersey's winter road preparations have left some feeling salty, saying the state is treating roads when there are no storms in weather forecasts after a lackluster response to a storm last month left motorists inching their way along snow-covered highways.

Residents accusing New Jersey Department of Transportation of road prep overkill gained the backing of state Sen. Declan O'Scanlon, R-Monmouth, who is calling the state to be "more judicious rather than overreaction."

NJDOT did not respond Tuesday to questions about its standards for treating roads for winter storms.

O'Scanlon said he is not attempting to beat up on Gov. Phil Murphy's administration, but wanted to be responsive to residents who have taken to social media to complain about roads being treated despite temperatures forecast to be in the 40s.

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"I get the administration probably felt like some of the reaction to the mistakes made during the November storm were a little over the top. OK, fair enough," O'Scanlon said. "But it absolutely is the case that we are now overreacting. It is money and resources that we won't have at the back end of the season or that is just being wasted."

Oversalting the road also has a potential environmental toll, as that salt runs off into waterways and into our drinking water system. High levels of sodium chloride in rock salt can strip the lead soldering from pipes in older homes, flushing those lead particles through your faucets.

Watch the video at the top of the page about how rock salt can impact lead levels in your water.

O'Scanlon spoke out on Twitter Monday after driving along Interstate 195, which had been treated with a road salt brine from Monmouth to Mercer counties even though the weather forecasts showed a storm that was not expected to hit the area. He issued a formal statement on Tuesday morning.

"I get what they are doing," he said. "They want to make sure they are being overly cautious. They need to hit reset."

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Monmouth County Department of Public Works crews take into account not just the forecasted weather but also the timing of the storms in relation to the public's commuting times, the amount of travel that occurs on particular roads as well as seemingly small elements such as the curves roads that might be slippery in a storm, Freeholder Director Tom Arnone said.

"The biggest thing is being prepared to act quickly on a notice that maybe there was a mistake in the weather report. We don’t take anything for granted, but we’re also not alarmists," he said.

Susanne Cervenka: @scervenka; 732-643-4229; scervenka@gannettnj.com