Technology lets residents keep tabs on plows

Traveling in winter weather always poses a risk, especially if you don’t know if the roads have been plowed.

As part of an expanded technology pilot, Gov. Tom Wolf announced the Automated Vehicle Location system in October, which would improve the state Department of Transportation’s information on vehicle movement and usage of winter materials, according to a news release from the governor’s office.

Recently, Wolf announced the AVL system will now give residents the ability to track plows online through www.511PA.com, the release said. Locations of more than 500 PennDOT plow trucks and 200 rental trucks will be available to the public in near-real time throughout the winter.

“This initiative will improve PennDOT’s operations by looking for efficiencies in how the agency’s fleet is operating during the winter months,” Wolf said in the release, “while promoting transparency by allowing the public access to this information.”

The AVL program is part of Wolf’s GO-TIME initiative, which has a projected cost savings of $1.4 million over the next four to six years, the release said, based on a combination of reduced salt usage and better use of department equipment.

According to PennDOT spokeswoman Marla Fannin, 12 trucks in Centre County have been equipped with the AVL technology. These trucks are dedicated to the interstates and expressways of the county.

“You would find trucks with this technology on Interstate 80, (Interstate) 99 and (U.S. Route) 322,” she said Wednesday.

As equipment is replaced, she said, it’s her understanding that all plow trucks in the county will eventually have the tracking technology. Currently, there are 35 trucks in the district, with a majority in Centre, Clearfield and Clinton counties.

Interstates are the top priority for plowing, she said, moving down to traffic routes, like North Atherton Street, and “quad routes,” or four-digit routes, like Fox Hollow Road.

With the reports of possibly heavy snow, Fannin said PennDOT prepares in anticipation of what is to be expected. A group discussion Thursday with AccuWeather should reveal how they anticipate the storm to develop, she said.

“During those sorts of calls, we’ll review the equipment available, the material available, those sorts of things,” she said. “Up until this time, we’ve had a very mild winter, so we are well-stocked with material.”

How exactly the storm moves will determine how much snow the region will see, according to the National Weather Service. Depending on the source, Centre Region residents have been told everything from a few inches to a few feet.

“There’s a lot of uncertainty, especially for State College,” said weather service meteorologist Craig Evanego, “because it looks like we’re probably going to be on the northern fringe of this system.”

A slight alteration in the track of the storm, either north or south, could have big implications on the amount of snow dropped, he said. The service was close to putting out numbers Wednesday, he said, but it was too early to tell for State College.

The storm looked like it had slowed, he said, and snow may not develop until Friday night, but it was simply too early for final amounts.

A state Department of Agriculture news release urged residents to take precautions with their animals if the threat of heavy snow holds true.

“Snowfall and low temperatures could make this a dangerous winter storm for Pennsylvanians who aren’t prepared for closed roads and blizzard conditions,” Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding said in the release. “For those in the agriculture industry, I urge you to plan ahead to mitigate any risks to your livestock, your facilities and the environment.”

Redding advised owners to protect their animals from low temperatures and high winds, which can cause cold stress, the release said. Additionally, owners could keep their animals clean and dry, provide adequate bedding, provide additional feed and change water often to prevent freezing.

This story was originally published January 20, 2016 at 6:35 PM with the headline "Technology lets residents keep tabs on plows."