 Gearing up for winter's worst
Inside Transportation Host Matt Reichmann Says: We are out here in Renton at the Renton Maintenance Facility and I am joined by Tony Ledbetter, who is a Maintenance Superintendent out here. And Tony, you're obviously one of the major players when it comes to how we're getting prepared for winter, and also how we're going to deal with the weather events when they actually do occur. So give me an idea of what's going on out here right now, and what we're anticipating as we head into the winter months. KCDOT Roads Maintenance Superintendent Tony Ledbetter Says: Well, we've been preparing for some time now getting stockpiles set aside for snow and ice, and making sure we have plenty of 'Road Closed' signs and 'Water Over Roadway' signs. Making sure we're prepared with the equipment we use to get trees off the road, and making sure we have all the equipment that we need, we've been doing that for some months now. Coming into the rainy season, we've already experienced a couple pretty good events, so they've tested us a little bit. What I do is basically watch the trends, either in the rivers, or where the rains are coming from and then we move resources where we need them as far as if it's the Snoqualmie Valley or if it's in the south end of the county. So, I kind of coordinate and work as a person that kind of coordinates the equipment for all our divisions. Inside Transportation Host Matt Reichmann Says: And tony, living in King County we know that we'll see at least one or maybe two snow events. Sometimes they're big, sometimes they're little. But, give me a sense of how we prioritize and try and keep the snow routes moving when we do see a big snow and ice event. KCDOT Roads Maintenance Superintendent Tony Ledbetter Says: We take into account, to set our routes; we take into account main arterials so we can move the most goods and services. We also take into account bus routes, routes in and out of hospitals, school bus routes and we arrange them in major arterials, secondary collectors and then we go back to our residential streets. So we concentrate on major arterials. In some events, we may not get off the major arterials, because there's so much snow, we may have to plow a major arterial several times during a shift. Inside Transportation Host Matt Reichmann Says: So people can keep that in mind, what else do they kind of need to bear in mind to make winter go more smoothly for them if the snow hits us really hard or we get some bad flooding? KCDOT Roads Maintenance Superintendent Tony Ledbetter Says: Well, one is be prepared, have your vehicle ready for snow and ice. And if you do need to leave home, try not to if you can avoid it in a snow event. It sure helps us get the roads open. But if you have to leave, be prepared for it, snow tires, be prepared, have your vehicle prepared. Also, if you do attempt to go up a hill and you do get stopped, try to move your vehicle off the road as much as possible. There's nothing worse than trying to get a 12-foot snow plow through a web of cars on a hill. It's very difficult. We try to get it open for everybody, but it's really difficult when we have so many cars stranded. Inside Transportation Host Matt Reichmann Says: Ok, so basically we never know what winter's going to throw at us, but we're getting prepared at the roads division, and residents in King County can do the same. KCDOT Roads Maintenance Superintendent Tony Ledbetter Says: That's right. Inside Transportation Host Matt Reichmann Says: Tony, thank you very much for joining me. KCDOT Roads Maintenance Superintendent Tony Ledbetter Says: You bet.
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