INDIANAPOLIS — Salt and plow truck drivers work tirelessly through winter to keep the roads clear. Have you ever wondered how they prepare for their shift?
Indianapolis Department of Public Works is currently running twelve-hour rotating shifts. This is to keep up with multiple rounds of ice, snow, and cold temperatures.
WRTV went to the 11 a.m. shift change at one of the DPW's buildings on Thursday.
As B-shift employees exited the building, groups of A-shifters filtered in and waited for their group briefing.
"A shift, good morning, good morning!" greeted William Walker, superintendent of District 3.
Walker was speaking to the group of incoming A-shift employees. They gathered in a large circle around Walker. Some stood; others found benches or couches to lounge on through the meeting.
Walker described the forecast and potential impacts on all the workers.
"The game plan today is the weather advisory is in effect," Walker said. "Snow expected late tonight, continuing into Friday morning. There's a potential for sticking on untreated pavement."
Walker went on to take roll call and give drivers their assignments for the day.
"You're going to get your trucks, check them out, make sure they're fueled up, have salt in them," Walker spoke to the group of drivers. "Ready to go when we deploy at three o'clock today."
After the meeting, drivers went outside to the row of waiting salt and plow trucks. Some performed maintenance, others were doing walk-arounds to ensure all their equipment was working properly.
Today's challenge was the shifting weather: from treating for freezing drizzle in the morning to focusing on what they call the 'snow fight' in the evening.
Dewayne Clemmons, Chief Union Steward, shared what happens once the drivers are deployed.
"It depends on the inclement weather that we get," Clemmons said. "We approach it differently."
"There's times that we've gotten so much snow that we just pause the salting, and just go strictly into a plowing operation, because at that point, all we're doing is just wasting salt," Clemmons continued.
Adam Pinsker, spokesperson for DPW, shared more of the process.
"When the snow comes, they'll be out plowing.," Pinsker said of the crews. "That'll start as soon as the first bit of snow comes down. It can be tricky because some parts of the city, like the last snow event we had, certain parts of the city got three or four inches, and other parts got less than two inches. So it does vary by where you are in Indianapolis."
Decisions to pause salting and move to plowing come from the Operations team. This is communicated to the different districts and ultimately communicated to each driver.
Even though the group of drivers has a plan when leaving the briefing at the start of the shift, the plan often shifts as the forecast unfolds.
In Thursday night's instance, A-shifters will continue plowing roads until 11 p.m., when B-shift returns for their next 12-hour shift.
The work doesn't stop once the snow has been plowed.
"Then we go back to salting, to start breaking it up, and try to get it down to bare pavement," continued Dewayne Clemmons.
From December 1 through April 1, drivers are not allowed to take scheduled vacations. This is in addition to working the rotating 12-hour shifts when the weather demands it.
It's a lot of work, but there is a support team for the drivers. There were countless other workers on-site at the changing of shifts.
"We also have Indianapolis Fleet Services. They're there to make sure that these vehicles are maintenanced if there's a problem," Pinsker told WRTV. "We have laborers who work back here at the salt barns and in the facilities. We have supervisors who are out here, so it takes an entire team to support our drivers and make sure they have what they need to succeed in this snow fight."
During the A-shift prep meeting, Clemmons encouraged the group.
"It looks like we may be in this until Sunday," Clemmons said. "It don't look like it's going to be as long as our last snow fight. We do appreciate you guys coming in. We're spending more time with each other than we're spending with our own families. So again, it doesn't go unnoticed."
What can everyday drivers do to help these hardworking DPW drivers during their next snow fight?
"When these trucks are out on the roads, just give them their space, because they're trying to make the roads safe for the city of Indianapolis," Clemmons concluded.
