Dec. 7, 2018
Department of Public Service Ready for Winter
The Department of Public Service is prepped and
ready for another winter season with its 2018-2019 Snow and Ice Control
Plan. The objective of the snow and ice
control program is to allocate trained personnel, proper equipment, and
adequate materials to provide a Passable Roadways objective
that allows for safe travel on our main and secondary roadways.
Planning and preparation for the coming winter
season has been ongoing since the close of the previous winter season. Staff within the Division of Infrastructure
Management has worked tirelessly over the past many months to perform a total
revision of the Snow and Ice Control Plan.
Major changes for this year include:
- Increased
Ability to Anti-Ice: From
last winter season to this winter season, through a combination of capital
purchases as well as in-house fabrication, the Division of Infrastructure
Management has increased their ability to anti-ice by over 50 percent. This equates to the ability to apply over
35,000 gallons of liquid material before or during and event.
- Establishment
of Lead Routes: Within
Priority 1 routes, Lead Routes have been identified based on factors including
traffic volume, travel speed and roadway composition. These routes will be serviced at the onset of
a winter event and maintained throughout each event at a high priority. Of the 109 Priority 1 routes, 32 have been
identified as lead routes.
- Zone Based
Priority 3 Routing: While
the use of route optimization has and continues to be effective for snow and
ice control, it could not take place of the experience the Snow Warriors have
in regards to the areas they have been serving for multiple years. In review of winter events from the previous
season the Snow Warriors have modified priority 3 service by utilizing route optimization
within the existing maintenance zones of each outpost.
When snow falls, be sure to go to warriorwatch.columbus.gov to see what City
streets have been serviced in the past 72 hours and to check the priority level
of your street. To learn more about our
Snow and Ice control program, be sure to visit columbus.gov/publicservice/Snow-and-Ice-Control. Here you can find not only a full version of
the Snow and Ice Control Plan but also a printable brochure as well as
Frequently Asked Questions and a glossary of common snow and ice control terms.