Media, PA – With colder temperatures upon us, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) District 6 highlighted its plans for the winter season and discussed how the public can successfully plan for winter weather at the Delaware County maintenance facility in Media Borough today.

"Our crews are well-trained for severe weather events and prepared to deliver the best possible winter service under the worst conditions," said PennDOT District 6's Delaware County Maintenance Manager Tony Goreski. "Whatever the weather brings this winter to the Philadelphia region, PennDOT will be ready."

PennDOT District 6 is responsible for over 11,000 snow-lane miles on state highways in Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia counties. A snow-lane is calculated as the miles of road multiplied by the number of lanes, which means a one-mile section of four-lane roadway would equal four snow-lane miles.

With $23.4 million budgeted for this winter's operations in the region, the District 6 fleet consists of 182 state snow trucks and 254 private contractor trucks and has over 124,000 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 91 municipalities that entered into winter maintenance agreements covering more than 3,400 snow lane miles, whereby local crews salt and plow specified state roads in each municipality.

When winter weather hits, PennDOT's primary focus is on interstates, expressways, and other major routes. Equipment may be redirected to those highways during significant winter events. If motorists encounter a snowplow on the roadway, they should slow down and drive at least six car lengths behind the plow to ensure safety for everyone. Motorists should never pass a snowplow because plow blades are wider than the truck.

"Our equipment operators have an enormous amount of responsibility during a storm as they plow snow; monitor computers that control the flow of salt; track pavement temperatures; and watch for traffic and possible roadside obstacles," Goreski added.

PennDOT is actively seeking 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. In addition, on Thursday, November 4, a District 6 job fair will be held, from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM, at the Delaware County Maintenance office, 426 South Old Middletown Road, Media.

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. Last winter in Pennsylvania, preliminary data shows there were 301 crashes resulting in four fatalities on winter-weather roadways where aggressive-driving behaviors such as speeding or making careless lane changes were factors.

PennDOT recommends that motorists 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 preparing for winter, visit www.PennDOT.gov/winter.

Motorists can check winter conditions on more than 40,000 roadway miles by visiting www.511PA.com or downloading the 511PA application for iPhone and Android devices. 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.

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MEDIA CONTACT: Robyn Briggs, 610-205-6799

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