ODOT
snow-fighting fleet ready for winter
More than 1,600 plow trucks will clear snow and ice in Ohio
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LEBANON (December 11, 2017) – Each of the Ohio Department of
Transportation’s (ODOT) 1,629 trucks is receiving a 150-point check as
part of the department’s annual county-by-county Operational Readiness
Inspections. This allows ODOT’s 262 mechanics to ensure snow-fighting
equipment is in top shape before the snow begins to fall.
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“It
is our intention to be the standard of excellence for winter maintenance.
Removing snow and ice from our roads and highways is extremely important
and our most visible function,” said ODOT Director Jerry Wray. “The men
and women of ODOT take great pride in making sure our roads are clear for
safe travel.”
ODOT
measures the success of snow removal by looking at the percent of
priority routes that recovered speeds within two hours of a snow event.
Last winter, ODOT crews met this goal 98 percent of the time.
Last
year, ODOT’s snow plow trucks were driven 6.8 million miles plowing and
pretreating roadways. That’s like 275 trips around the Earth. Crews used
more than 600,000 tons of salt and 12 million gallons of liquid deicers
to treat nearly 44,000 lane miles of roadway.
ODOT’s
District 8 Office has 160 trucks and 327 trained drivers ready to plow
more than 3,800 lane miles in the seven counties under its responsibility
in southwest Ohio. There is also nearly 60,000 tons of salt on hand to be
used during snow and ice events in Butler, Clermont, Clinton, Green,
Hamilton, Preble and Warren counties.
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“Our
plow driver’s work hard to clear snow and ice, but we need the public’s
help as well,” said ODOT District 8 Deputy Director Tammy Campbell.
“Statewide, ODOT plows were struck 35 times last year. Please be sure
to give our drivers plenty of room to work. Plow trucks typically drive
much slower than other traffic and can propel large amounts of heavy
snow, so be extra alert when driving near them.”
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The
public can monitor real-time traffic conditions via more than 600 live
traffic cameras statewide. Customized traffic alerts are also available
through ODOT’s free mobile app – OHGO.
The app is available on the App Store
and Google Play.
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