At home is the safest place to be during winter weather, but those who must travel during storms
can rest assured that their local highway teams and state DOT are working hard to maintain roadways for winter travel. This year, many public works teams will be working even harder, with longer shifts and additional demands because of a snowplow driver shortage. Current estimates suggest the trucking industry is short 80,000 drivers nationally‐ a record high. A lack of individuals with Commercial Drivers’ Licenses is being felt across the country, including in New Hampshire where many local highway agencies have struggled to fill temporary seasonal positions for snowplow operators and other snow and ice‐ fighting positions. Despite these challenges, public works teams are working hard to be ready for whatever winter might throw at usThis Winter, Public Workers are Doing More with Less , and to always live up to the motto that Public Works Makes It Happen. They’re thinking creatively about how to minimize any impact to Levels of Service, such as shifting team members within municipal departments, and recruiting Fire and Medical Responders, retired public servants, and contractors to fill critical snow operation roles. Some crews are adding new tools to their winter response toolbox this year, including innovative liquids and treated salts to prevent and treat icy roadways more efficiently while often simultaneously reducing costs, impact to the environment, and Spring clean‐ up time. We’re proud of the many New Hampshire highway departments that joined UNH T2 this year to learn about the latest materials and options for addressing snow and ice. In addition to reviewing your community’s Level of Service plan to understand your highway agency’s strategy for winter clean‐up, take a moment to sign up for available service alerts, such as through email, phone, website, or social media. And if you have a question about how your streets are being maintained, give your public works director or road agent a call. Community service teams take pride in their supportive role to our municipalities and are happy to talk about their activities and efforts. Want to lend a helping hand? It’s slow‐going when cleaning up sidewalks after a snowstorm; there’s specific equipment needed to do the job, and from a logistics perspective, this is often the final step in the snow removal process. Shoveling the sidewalk in front of your home and keeping the hydrants cleared helps not only your public works team, but also pedestrians and your neighbors. Public works professionals work tirelessly, often behind the scenes, to maintain our roadways and public infrastructure, and despite the unique circumstances and challenges they’re facing this winter, they remain committed to promoting safe travel. When the snowflakes start falling, please don’t forget to slow down and move over for the snowplow, and to extend any additional courtesy possible to the dedicated men and women that maintain our public roadways. This winter, although they may be doing much more with less, they will be giving their best for our towns and cities. Know someone who might be interested in a career or part‐time job, and wants to work with a dedicated team that makes a difference every day in the lives of New Hampshire’s citizens and drivers? Encourage them to check out the great opportunities available with our state and local highway teams and public works departments. The UNH Technology Transfer Center fosters a safe, efficient, and environmentally sound surface transportation system by improving skills and increasing knowledge of the transportation workforce and decision makers. As the site of the state’s Local Technical Assistance Program, it works to enable local counties, cities, and towns to improve their roads and bridges by supplying them with a variety of training programs, an information clearinghouse, new and existing technology updates, personalized technical assistance, and newsletters. For more information about UNH T2 visit https://t2.unh.edu/ or contact Marilee Enus at marilee.enus@unh.edu UNH Technology Transfer Center 33 Acad Durham NH, 03824 Phone: 603.862.1362 Comments are closed.
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