News

It’s a challenge every agency faces: making winter roadways safe for drivers while minimizing the environmental impact of salt use. To help its districts meet both goals, Minnesota DOT has developed a best practices guide and a compilation of training resources for operators and supervisors.

MnDOT’s Salt Sustainability resources address:

• Equipment training, including training videos on spreader operation and fabrication instructions for salt chutes and air foils.
• Calibration of spreaders and liquid application equipment.
• Decision-making, including using maintenance decision support systems (MDSS) and selecting materials and methods.
• Material handling and storage.

Compiled as part of MnDOT’s Salt Sustainability initiative, the resources also provide guidance on anti-icing, direct liquid application, truck washing and more.

Here’s a look at some in-progress research projects from agencies around the country.

• Improve and Gain Efficiency in Winter Operations, Indiana DOT. Project description.

• Evaluation of Slurry Box, Underbody Scraper, and Two-Way Reversible Plow, Minnesota DOT. Project page.

• Weather-Responsive Management Strategies, Texas DOT. Project page.

• Reducing Uncertainties in Snow Fence Design: Development of Methods for Estimation of Snow Drifting and the Snow Relocation Coefficient, Iowa DOT. Project description.

• Guidelines for Using Photogrammetric Tools on Unmanned Aircraft Systems to Support the Rapid Monitoring of Avalanche-Prone Roadside Environments, Pacific Northwest Transportation Consortium. Project page.

Check out these recent reports from agencies around the country:

• Update of the Class 8 Truck Study, Utah DOT, October 2019. Research report.

• Road Weather and Creative Safety Messaging on Dynamic Message Signs, Minnesota DOT, October 2019. Research report.

• Validation of the Mechanical Rocker Test Method for Ice Melting Capacity (MRT-IMC), Nebraska DOT, 2019. Research report.

• Brine Application Equipment and Methodology, Caltrans, January 2019. Research report.

In training news, if you missed the TRB webinar on NCHRP Research Report 889: Performance Measures in Snow and Ice Control Operations, the recording and presentation slides are now available. Webinar.

Call for Presentations: Organizers of the 2020 International Road Weather and Winter Maintenance Conference & Peer Exchange are looking for practical and innovative presentations on best practices in road weather management and winter maintenance operations. Presentation abstracts are due March 2; the conference and peer exchange will be held September 21-23 in Atlanta. Details and conference registration.

QPL Update: The Clear Roads Qualified Products List has resumed accepting product checklists and samples from vendors. For details on the submission process, visit the QPL page.

Check out these recent reports from agencies around the country:

• Synthesis of Safety Applications in Winter Weather Operations, Texas DOT, November 2019. Research report.

• Relationships Between Weather and Roadway Safety, Iowa DOT, September 2019. Research report.

• Modeling the Macroscopic Effects of Winter Maintenance Operations on Traffic Mobility on Washington Highways, Center for Advanced Multimodal Mobility Solutions and Education, September 2019. Research report.

• Cost-Effectiveness of Constructing Minimal Shelter to Store INDOT Equipment (Weather Protection), Indiana DOT, February 2019. Research report.

In training news, Iowa DOT recently posted an update to the agency’s popular Winter Operations Training video series. The new series includes 13 videos on topics such as plowing techniques, preseason preparation, and how deicing chemicals work.

Save the date! The Pacific Northwest Snowfighters will hold their 2020 conference on June 2 and 3 in Portland, Oregon. For details on past conferences, see the PNS website.

Other upcoming events:

• TRB Annual Meeting (January 12-16, Washington, DC)
• APWA Snow Conference (April 19-22, Cleveland, Ohio)
• National Winter Maintenance Peer Exchange (week of September 21, Atlanta)

Hope to see you there!

As temperatures drop, industry magazines are turning their focus to winter maintenance. The October issue of APWA Reporter features an article on Clear Roads training materials:

• Video training on plowing intersections and interchanges
• Video training on using liquids for anti-icing and deicing
• Snowplow Operator and Supervisor Training: 22 customizable instructor-led training modules

For more winter maintenance news, check out Roads & Bridges’ annual Winter Maintenance issue. Article topics include mobile sensors, smarter salt spreaders, and corrosion mitigation.

Check out these recent reports from agencies around the country:

• NCHRP Research Report 889: Performance Measures in Snow and Ice Control Operations, National Cooperative Highway Research Program, 2019. Research report.
• Snow and Ice Control Performance Measurement: Comparing “Grip,” Traffic Speed Distributions and Safety Outcomes During Winter Storms, Vermont Agency of Transportation, April 2019. Research report.
• Bio-Based Renewable Additives for Anti-Icing Applications (Phase II), Center for Environmentally Sustainable Transportation in Cold Climates, January 2019. Research report.
• Evaluating Potential Effects of Deicing Salts on Roadside Carbon Sequestration, Center for Environmentally Sustainable Transportation in Cold Climates, January 2019. Research report.

As we work to restructure the product submittal process for the Clear Roads Qualified Products List (QPL), we are requesting that no product checklists or samples be submitted until further notice. We hope to be able to start receiving products by October 14. Thanks for your patience as we make this transition.

Please share this information with anyone who may need it. For more information about the Clear Roads QPL, please visit the QPL page.