PennDOT Highlights Winter Preparedness, Safety Tips, Job Opportunities Across Philadelphia Region

East Whiteland Township, PA -The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) today highlighted its winter season preparedness, public safety tips, and employment opportunities across the five-county Philadelphia region during a briefing at the Swedesford Road and Route 29 maintenance stockpile yard in East Whiteland Township, Chester County.

"Our crews are prepared to deliver the best possible service no matter what the weather brings to our region" said PennDOT District 6's Senior Assistant District Executive of Maintenance Thomas Rogal. "Our top priority every day is public safety, especially during inclement weather, which is why planning for the winter season occurs throughout the year."

District 6 is responsible for over 10,000 snow-lane miles on state highways in Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia counties. When winter weather hits, PennDOT's primary focus is on interstates, expressways, and higher-traffic roads and will continue to keep all routes passable. During larger storms, lower-traffic roadways may take longer to address but PennDOT will continue to plow roads until the storm ends and roads are cleared.

PennDOT continues to ask for the public's help in keeping themselves and snowplow drivers safe by slowing down, increasing their following distance, avoiding distractions, and staying off the road during winter storms.

"We ask for motorists help in keeping us all safe, said Rogal. "We want our employees working to clear the roadways and the public to get home safely to their friends and families. Patience during a winter event is essential."

Last winter in Pennsylvania, preliminary data shows that there were 151 crashes statewide resulting in three fatalities and 55 injuries on snowy, slushy, or ice-covered roadways where aggressive-driving behaviors such as speeding or making careless lane changes were factors.

With over $18 million budgeted for this winter's regional operations, the District 6 fleet consists of 182 state-owned snow trucks and 263 private contractor trucks and has over 110,000 tons of salt on hand. The number of contractor trucks and materials used for each event is determined by the severity of each storm.

Assisting PennDOT this winter in the Philadelphia region are 92 municipalities that entered into winter maintenance agreements covering more than 3,500 snow lane miles, whereby local crews salt and plow specified state roads in each municipality.

Each year, PennDOT seeks temporary equipment operators for the winter season to supplement the department's full-time staff. Details on minimum requirements - such as possession of a CDL - as well as application information , are available at www.employment.pa.gov/penndot. Through the same website and www.employment.pa.gov, job seekers can find other temporary and full-time positions.

Drivers are advised to prepare for potential bad weather by carrying an emergency kit in their vehicles. The kit should include non-perishable food, water, first-aid supplies, small shovel, cell phone charger and any other items necessary for families to have, such as baby or pet supplies, and medications. For more information on winter guidelines, operations, and safety visit penndot.pa.gov/winter.

Motorists can check conditions on more than 40,000 roadway miles, including color-coded winter conditions on 2,900 miles, by visiting www.511PA.com. 511PA, which is free and available 24 hours a day, provides traffic delay warnings, weather forecasts, traffic speed information, and access to more than 1,000 traffic cameras.

511PA is also available through a free smartphone application for iPhone and Android devices, by calling 5-1-1, or by following local alerts on X.

Subscribe to PennDOT news and traffic alerts in Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia counties at www.penndot.pa.gov/District6.

Find PennDOT news on X, Facebook, and Instagram.

MEDIA CONTACT: Robyn Briggs, [email protected]

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