Utah Department of Transportation Region 2 Communications Manager Kylar Sharpe says the agency is close to fully staffed with plow drivers heading into this winter.
UDOT maintains several key roads in the Wasatch Back, including Interstate 80, Interstate 84 and Highway 40. When a snowstorm hits, Sharpe said crews always focus first on those major roads, before moving to others like state Route 224.
“We do everything we possibly can to make sure that those roads don’t fail,” Sharpe said. “And then we’ll get to the other ones when we can.”
He advises drivers to travel with caution if they’re close to a snowplow on the road.
“Please, please, please do not pass the snow plow,” Sharpe said. “We’ve got to remember that the safest place, if you’re driving on the road in a winter storm, is behind a snow plow. Because you’re driving on fresh pavement if you’re following them.”
Summit County Public Works Director John Angell said they’re currently staffed with 21 snow plow drivers.
The county’s top priorities for road clearing includes school bus routes and major frontage roads. Angell said Browns Canyon is one of the most dangerous areas for drivers in their jurisdiction.
“It gets icy, and you don’t know it until you’re trying to stop, and then all of a sudden, you’re going too fast,” Angell said.
Summit County doesn’t operate snow plows between 10 p.m. and 4 a.m., so he said sometimes they can get behind if major snow drops overnight. Angell wants to remind residents that Summit County ordinance bans all on street parking on county roads until mid-April, to make room for snow maintenance.
Park City Public Works Director Troy Dayley said this is the first winter in three years the city is fully staffed with snow plow drivers.
“Bus routes and steep streets, stuff like that, are always priority one,” Dayley said. “Connector roads can be a priority two. And then cul-de-sacs are typically the priority three streets."
Dayley says residents can help plow drivers by removing trash cans from the street and keeping cars off to the side. He also said residents who hire contractors to remove snow from their property should keep the snow off the street.
