MODOT prepares for winter weather state wide

As the temperatures get colder and colder outside, MODOT crews statewide used the nice day to train. Every facility across the state had it’s workers re-visit the tractors and trucks, to train new hires on how to do the job right.

In Cole County, 55 operators and 16 different kinds of trucks will very soon be out and about cleaning up the ice and snow.

“There are snow plows they’ve got to hook and unhook and then there are spreader boxes that hold the salt and senders that we use to basically scatter on the road to get the snow to melt off so, it’s really all of those things put together that they are working on, getting back in and familiar with”, said Central District Maintenance Engineer Randy Aulber.

These crew members also learned different skills, like how to drive the bigger trucks, how to change a tire and how to apply tire chains.

“Basically what we do is give training to all new employees and all of our seasonal operators we give training to, it never hurts to have a refresher course on all of the safety and how to keep everybody safe during snow fighting”, said Maintenance Supervisor Kyle Fischer.

MODOT officials said they’ve also prepared for the winter weather by buying extra salt, about 10% more than last year. Aulber said states were hit hard last year.

Aulber said, “Last year we bought salt for about $60 dollars a ton and this year we were spending upwards of about $80 so it’s a significant increase over what we had to purchase it at before.”

Salt, calcium, and beet juice are all things these crews will soon be laying on the roads to keep you safe while driving this season.

For more information on winter weather road conditions, you can check road conditions on our website here.