Nov. 19 – The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation says it’s ready to battle winter weather with a nearly $144 million budget.

A fleet of nearly 2,300 dump trucks, 517 front-end loaders, 214 graders and 24 snowblowers will go to work this winter. The state is also adding some high-tech weapons to its snow-fighting arsenal.
One is the addition of 29 new Roadway Information System sites, bringing the total to 51. First installed about 10 years ago along Interstate 80, RWIS sites collect data on air and pavement temperature, wind speed, direction, humidity and salt concentration on the road. The new ones also include cameras to give a picture of weather and traffic conditions, plus improved pavement sensors for information on average vehicle speeds and traffic volume. PennDOT will use the real-time data gathered from these sites to make better decisions about handling the road conditions.
This year, PennDOT also added 55 anti-icing trucks to its fleet, bringing the total to 67. Anti-icing trucks apply liquid magnesium chloride, calcium chloride or salt water to the road surface before freezing precipitation starts to fall.
For information on interstate road conditions, you can call PennDOT’s toll-free road condition hotline at 1-888-783-6783. You can also visit PennDOT’s web site at http://www.dot.state.pa.us.