ODOT Gears Up for Its Annual Battle Against Snow and Ice

ZANESVILLE, OH – The Ohio Department of Transportation hosted an event that not only showcased their winter preparation efforts, but also extended a warm welcome to local trade school students.

During the Winter Readiness Event, Mid-East students got a behind the scenes look at how ODOT inspects and equips their vehicles before the winter season.

“Every year in preparation for our snow and ice season, our mechanics and our highway technicians work together to go over all of our trucks and our equipment to make sure that they are ready for the winter season. They go over basically 150 different points on the trucks to make sure that they are ready to go,” ODOT Dist. 5 Public Information Officer, Morgan Eibel said.

As ODOT gears up for its annual battle against snow and ice, this year’s preparations are facing a significant change due to the ongoing construction on Interstate 70.

“We’re going to have increased liquid usage through there. We’re going to use a lot of anti-icing techniques to keep it clear. We know it’s narrow, but we’ve prepared for this, we’ve known about it, and t’s coming,” Muskingum County ODOT Manager, Phil Valentine.

ODOT plans to enhance their winter readiness by adding extra equipment in case of high accumulation events.