MDOT Preparing For Pandemic’s Effects On Winter Maintenance

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The Michigan Department of Transportation is preparing for winter maintenance during the COVID pandemic. Spokesperson Dan Weingarten tells WSJM News the public should be prepared for some plowing to be delayed if an outbreak affects the work crews.

“We are concerned that potentially we could have some infections of staffers or quarantine situations where people are unable to work because they’ve potentially been exposed to somebody, so we are doing some contingency planning,” Weingarten said.

MDOT is looking at several possibilities.

“Adjusting routes, moving people around if necessary, looking at pulling in supervisors and other staffers who are licensed to drive plows, all of those possibilities.”

Weingarten notes most plowing is done by local agencies that work with MDOT, and it’s making sure they all have open lines of communication so the public can be told when plowing is delayed. Other possibilities for responding include prioritizing which routes get maintained first.