Ohio Department of Transportation keeps Eye out for Snow

MUSKINGUM COUNTY, Ohio- With snow accumulations in the forecast, the Ohio Department of Transportation is prepared for any inclement weather situation at any time.

Depending on the amount of snow depends on the amount of winter service vehicles on the road. Depending on what the weather does, ODOT County Manager Phil Valentine said they may have trucks out to move slush to make commuting easier.

“Temperatures look like they’re going to be right around 32 but slightly higher. On the good side, the pavement temperatures, just from the last few days obviously they are higher. Right now, we’re really not expecting any accumulation on the pavement, we’ll see how the event progresses. We’ll keep an eye on it through the night,” ODOT County Manager Phil Valentine said.

The ODOT takes care of about 750 lane miles in Muskingum County. Winters in the past have been a little easier, but this year accounted for more preparation. 

“We’ve actually used about 10,000 ton of salt this year, quite a bit more than what we used the last couple years. We use liquids with our salt, some counties use a little bit of calcium, but this county, Muskingum at least used over 200,000 gallons of liquids just to help try keep the roads clear for the public,” Valentine said.

Recently, pavements have started warming up and snow and ice hasn’t been a huge concern, however pavements are still damaged from the winter season. During this time, the ODOT looks into pavement and pothole patching.