Forty Pierce County vehicles are clearing primary arterial routes today and hope to shift over to secondary arterials and residential roads tonight, said Bruce Wagner, of Pierce County Public Works and Utilities.
South of Graham and Eatonville is the hardest hit area in the county with 10 to 20 inches of snow, said Wagner, road operations division manager.
Crews have been plowing 1,517 lane miles of primary arterial routes linking to residential areas. Wagner said he hopes crews will start plowing secondary arterials and residential roads from 6 p.m. to midnight today. That’s another 924 lane miles of roads. Then, crews will salt and plow primary arterials again overnight.
“We’re focusing our resources on the good of the many,” Wagner said.
The goal is to plow at least within a couple of blocks of houses in neighborhoods by midnight today, he said.
The primary arterials are generally plowed down to compact snow and ice.
“You have to be very careful,” Wagner said. “They are reasonably passable.”
His advice: “Be patient. We’ll do everything we can to get you out of those residential areas.”
Wagner said the county has 166 employees split into working 12-hour shifts. Most are working out of the central maintenance facility in Frederickson, where there is about six inches of snow.
“Right now, we’re only plowing,” Wagner said. “When it’s snowing hard like this, salt doesn’t do any good.”
The county also has three “hit trucks “ to help clear snow and deploy for emergencies, such as fallen trees. So far, there have been only a few calls for fallen trees.
To report road problems or emergencies, call 253-798-6000.
Steve Maynard: 253-597-8647
steve.maynard@thenewstribune.com
blog.thenewstribune.com/street
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