Mid-Missouri road crews preparing for potential snow Saturday

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Road crews with Jefferson City Public Works and Columbia Public Works are putting their plans in place to get the cities roads cleared as fast as possible.

The timing of those plow trucks hitting the road will depend on when that winter weather is expected to start and if the rain will allow them to do any pre-treatment on the roads beforehand.

Britt Smith, with Jefferson City Public Works, says, "The forecast right now is talking about this starting off as rain.  Anytime we get that situation pre-treatment just goes right out the window because it will all get washed off before the freezing precipitation starts."

Smith says like most winter weather events it is a wait-and-see approach.

"And more importantly get our guys when they leave the office tomorrow they know they are probably getting a call and hopefully we are getting to narrow down that window," says Smith.

And with 250 miles of roads to clear in Jefferson City it may require different treatments on each end of town because "concrete streets act differently than asphalt streets."

Heading north on the highway in Columbia the planning process is the same, but this year, Columbia has added to its fleet to help get more drivers out in the road.

John Ogan, with Columbia Public Works, says, "We purchased three class 5 pickup trucks and what that means is they can haul almost as much salt as a much larger vehicle."

Those new trucks provide the city with the ability to pull nearly anyone from the public works office out to help clear the roads.  Public Works also wants to remind drivers not to park on the streets in a weather event.

"That is going to enable to have a better response and treat the streets more effectively and more safely.  It is possible this storm could be over two inches, then we will put out announcements that you are unable to park on priority roads," said Ogan.

When it comes to getting those streets clear, Ogan says the city has a plan in place.

"We are following the plan that is given to us.  We will always do that and we are always monitoring conditions and will adjust that plan accordingly depending on the amount of snow and the timing," Ogan says.

Road crews want to stress that last point.  Give the plow trucks room on the road and keep your distance when behind a plow truck for their safety and for drivers.