Winter isn't here just yet, but crews at the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) are already preparing for the season.
Local snowplow drivers met at ODOT's Hamilton County garage on Tuesday morning to review their routes and discuss strategy for this year's winter weather.
Joe Estes is heading into his 8th winter as a snowplow operator. For him, preparing for the season means keeping a close eye on the weather conditions and forecasts so he can be ready to answer the call when severe weather hits.
Estes and his fellow drivers often get called into work late at night or early in the morning and need to be ready at a moment's notice to work long stretches during winter storms. He says during major weather events, he may work two 16-hour shifts back-to-back with just an 8-hour break in between.
"The storm we got last year, the big one, my shift, I think it was 11 pm until 3:30 pm," Estes said. "I went home, I had 8 hours to hang out, rest, do what I need to do, before I'm due back at work."
He says the work can be grueling, which is why ODOT wants drivers to exercise caution when they see salt trucks and snowplows out on the highway. ODOT says drivers should give the trucks plenty of space to work to avoid collisions and allow them to work efficiently.
"Just give us time. We're not out there to slow anybody down. We're not out there to make people late to work. We're out there to do a job. To make the road conditions safe for everybody. All of our families use these same exact roads," Estes said.
Snowplower operators also want drivers to be patient, especially during winter storms. Estes says when he gets off the job, he hears a lot of criticism. He wants people to know that ODOT's drivers have a lot of ground to cover and can't be everywhere at once, but they're still working to make roads passable as soon as possible.
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