INDIANAPOLIS — With the National Weather Service calling for a wetter than average winter in Indiana, the City of Indianapolis recently highlighted the training Indy DPW’s Snow Force team has undergone throughout October to prepare for the upcoming winter.
“This month, residents have already seen salt trucks testing routes and fine-tuning their equipment — leaving nothing to chance for when the real nasty weather starts,” said Mayor Joe Hogsett.
The team of almost 300 men and women began training earlier this month, starting with an in-classroom master snow plow training and in-person driving training. Indy DPW worked hard to adapt training programs to keep employees safe amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, while still making sure drivers are trained and ready for snow fights this season.
Also in preparation for this upcoming winter, DPW added seven trucks to their fleet in 2020. This brings the snow truck fleet to a total of 100 trucks ready to clear roads across Marion County. Since 2016, Indy DPW has invested more than $16 million on snow equipment.
Additionally on hand are 18,000 tons of salt ready to help make roads safer and keep Indianapolis moving. Indy DPW uses a granular de-icing “salt” product which lowers the freezing point of water on roadways and which is designed to stick to streets once distributed by plow trucks.
Residents can stay up to date on Indy Snow Force efforts during winter weather events online at indy.gov/snow and on Twitter by following @IndySnowForce.
