Another winter season comes to Wadsworth, and in preparation, individuals from departments all over help provide for the city. They hold classes for plow drivers, closely watch the snow, and save money cautiously.
According to the information on snow and ice removal in the City of Wadsworth, the city buys around 2,500 to 3,000 salt per winter season.
Crews monitor forecasts carefully to determine when to begin salting or plowing because the roads can become quickly dangerous when waiting too long. They use the National Weather Service, have direct contact with people, and observe a variety of apps to get a good idea of when snow will fall.
The street maintenance supervisor, Bryan Shriver, works to help prepare Wadsworth for the snow every year.
“I have lived in Wadsworth my entire life and have family, friends and coworkers that I can help assist in getting safely to and from work or wherever else they have to travel on a day-to-day basis safely,” Shriver said.
Shriver also explains that the streets department mainly covers the snowy roads. Snow plow drivers must take months of classes produced by the Ohio Department of Transportation and their department directors. This is to ensure the safety of the community.
Jon Bellack, Assistant Director of Public Service, used to be in the same position as Shriver. Bellack, however, still helps out sometimes with the snow removal.
During bad weather, the department needs more coverage of the roads. They also need to know more about what is going on with the safety of citizens and weather coverage, so sometimes the police department and parks department help out.
Bellack also talks about practical tools they use when it snows. They have a different plan for each type of snow. Fluffy snow, heavy snow, and other kinds of snow all have different impacts on the roads and how people drive.
Bellack brings forth the use of pre-wetting systems. They usually use this before snow only. So, if it were to rain before snow lightly, they would not opt to use it because it would wash away the brine solution. The brine solution essentially uses water to road salt to make the road salt stick and begin to work faster to dissolve snow.
The city holds multiple equipment pieces, such as about ten five-ton trucks, two one-ton trucks, and a specialized pre-treatment truck; crews have to take classes to handle this equipment.
“It’s basically like driving a big dump truck with a minivan hanging off of it,” Bellack said.
When using these plow trucks, drivers must know safety percussions and routes, such as what to do when it gets too snowy or what to do when it is not safe to drive.
Some things they do are prioritize streets and produce a snow ban. Shriver explains that one of the main reasons for a snow ban is the safety of both plow and standard drivers.
Snow bans are where people of power, such as the mayor, police department, or street supervisor, call for no one to drive on the roads.
“A city-wide snow parking ban is usually enforced when we have 3” of snow or more,” Shriver said.
They also prioritize certain main roads, such as access or steep roads.
“We have about 16 Primary Roads,” Shriver said. “These are the main routes in town or roads that may have the steepest hills. Some examples are High Street, Leatherman Road, College Street, Akron Road, and many others.”
Ultimately, Shriver strives to make sure those in the community are safe for the winter seasons. Ballack suggested that new drivers be careful and not drive when the snow is bad.