PREPARING FOR A SNOW JOB
Plows attached, salt sheds full and crews ‘ready for anything’
As it’s getting chilly outside, you may begin thinking of that dreaded drive in an icy road or in snowstorm.
With the coronavirus pandemic restrictions expected to be in place all winter, many people might not be driving as much as in previous winters.
Regardless of the situation, PennDOT and local municipalities are shifting their focus from repairing roads and bridges to ensuring the roads and bridges are safe from snow and ice.
Ronald J. Young Jr., PennDOT spokesman for District 5, which includes Berks County, said that PennDOT crews will continue to do routine roadwork until the ground freezes. However, he said, the bulk of the road work will soon go on hiatus until the weather
warms up.
PennDOT overall has 2,186 snow trucks operated by about 4,700 workers. The Berks contingent is 41 snow trucks operated by 62 workers.“When winter does strike, PennDOT will have crews treating roadways around the clock, but the department’s aim is to keep roads passable rather than completely free of ice and snow,” Young said. “However, PennDOT will continue to treat roadways throughout the storm until precipitation stops and roads are clear.”
Young said that before a storm, PennDOT crews may pretreat the roads with brine from the backs of antiicing trucks.
However, he said, crews generally will not pretreat with salt brine when a storm is forecast to start as rain because rain will wash it away.
PennDOT is well prepared with salt.
The state agency has 792,000 tons of salt, including 22,000 tons for Berks. Last year, PennDOT spread 1,820 tons in Berks County.
The primary goal of PennDOT and municipal road crews in the winter is to keep the highways safe and free of ice.
PennDOT provides additional service to areas near schools and other large public gathering places.
“As traffic or precipitation increases, so does the time it takes for a plow to complete its route,” Young said. “If you’re stuck in traffic, so are we. This means that if storms hit at rush hour, you should plan extra time for your commute.”
The state has budgeted $233 million for the 2020-21 season, includes $20.4 million for District 5 based in Allentown.
The PennDOT trucks already have their plows attached just in case there is an early storm. PennDOT has 5,000 employees who plow 95,600 snow lanes. It’s primary focus is interstate highways and expressways.
According to PennDOT data:
• 4,700 drivers are available to drive plows
• 380 trucks will be rented
• The average winter has nearly 30 inches of snow
PennDOT officials recommend postponing all travel plans during bad weather. On a typical highly traveled road, it could take up to two hours to plow a road. But on a more remote state road, it could take as long as five hours.
Municipal crews
In Berks, municipalities are also gearing up for winter weather as leaf collection and filling potholes and road cracks is winding down.
Exeter Township Highway Superintendent Clarence Hamm said the traffic is still heavy in Exeter and the plows are ready to go if it snows.
“Our plows are ready to roll,” he said. “Earlier this week, we already saw snow in Georgia and Louisiana.”
Exeter clears off 120 miles of municipal roadway. Last year, he said, there was not much snow, so the township has a full supply of salt.
Hamm noted that despite the stay-at-home recommendations and school being mostly virtual, there is still a lot of traffic on Route 422.
In Spring Township, Paul Darrah, director of public works, said he has been working just about every day since the coronavirus pandemic hit in March.
He said the crews finished up leaf collection and filling potholes and are ready to focus on winter weather.
The township is responsible for plowing 126 miles of roads, including Broadcasting Road and Meridian Boulevard.
“If we have a storm today, we are ready to go,” Darrah said. “We have to be ready for anything.”
Darrah said that the township has more than enough salt for the roads, noting last winter was very mild and the salt trucks only went out once.