EPOKE Systems Help Snow And Ice Removal
November 23, 2009[/cneter]
Mount Clemens – The Road Commission of Macomb County has purchased three more Epoke Salt Spreading Systems to improve snow and ice removal on streets and highways as it prepares for winter.
“When it snows, we put all of our available personnel and equipment on the roads and the Epokes have become an integral part of the preparation for the storm and the clearing of the snow,” said Bob Mykytiak, superintendent of maintenance for the Road Commission. “The Epokes cover several lanes at one time.”
The three new Epokes were purchased recently from Bell Equipment Co. of Lake Orion for $82,000 each, giving the Road Commission a total of eight salt-and-brine spreading machines.
The Epokes provide the Road Commission with another tool to keep roads clear of ice and snow and save money by cutting its usage of road salt, which has increased in price by 35 to 66 percent since last year.
Mykytiak explained the Epokes make better and more efficient use of de-icing products than standard spreaders.
“They can reduce the amount of salt used on the routes they are assigned by as much as 30 percent,” he said. “If the Epokes can reduce our overall salt usage by 10 percent, it would be a savings of $275,000 a year.”
The Epoke systems are used mostly on freeways and wide highways, such as M-59, Mound Road and Van Dyke because they can cover up to about 40 feet of roadway at one time.
The Epoke gives the Road Commission the ability to apply dry salt, pre-wetted salt or spread it in a salt brine solution on the roads.
Normally, when a snow storm hits the Road Commission uses three methods to clear roads. The first involves spraying a brine solution (a mixture of water and salt) on the dry pavement just ahead of the storm to prevent snow and ice from sticking, making their removal much easier. The second step is plowing, and the third is the application of dry salt or pre-wet salt to break up snow and ice that has accumulated on the road.
The use of pre-wet road salt and brine solutions offers two benefits. The pre-wet salt and brine are already activated before they are spread and melt the snow and ice more quickly. They also adhere to the pavement better and do not bounce off the surface, as dry salt will do.
The Epoke spreaders allow the Road Commission to accomplish all three operations with one vehicle.
Getting the Epokes mounted in the beds of eight of its dual-axle dump trucks is just the beginning of the Road Commission’s change over from summer to winter operations.
“The fall is our transition period,” Mykytiak said. “The vehicles are set up for salting and plowing operations. We have checked and replaced hydraulic hoses as needed; calibrated the salt spreaders and checked the in-cab computers that regulate the spreaders to make sure they are working properly.”
The Road Commission also has approved contracts that help it get roads cleared of snow and ice as quickly as possible.
When fuel tax revenues began to fall in 2005, the Road Commission cut back on costs. Since that time, it has reduced its staff through attrition by about 15 percent, from 305 to 256 employees.
One result: The Road Commission contracts with four townships, Shelby, Clinton, Chesterfield and Washington for additional plowing in their communities during major snowstorms.
It also contracts with retired Road Commission truck drivers to supplement its staff of about 110 drivers who work up to 16-hour shifts plowing and salting roads during snow storms. Those drivers and others were given refresher courses on the equipment.
And the Road Commission has plenty of that salt ready. The Road Commission has contracted for up to 68,000 tons of road salt for the winter. Its barns at the service centers in Clinton Township, Shelby Township, Washington Township and New Haven are filled with salt.
Mykytiak added that the Road Commission is ready to respond to snow and icy conditions at any time, but there is a delay at night before a full complement of drivers can be called into to work.
“We can’t afford the overtime that it would cost to bring drivers in until we know a storm is near. So we keep a close watch on the weather and have crews inspecting the roads throughout night to alert us when conditions warrant calling everyone in to work.
“The worst thing that can happen is for a storm to hit during rush hour because our salt trucks and plows get caught in the same traffic jams as everyone else.”
Road Commissioner Dan Dirks said the agency will do everything it can to keep the roads in Macomb County as clear and safe as possible through the winter months, but it may take a little longer because of cutbacks the agency has had to make.
He noted that funding for the Road Commission has fallen dramatically in recent years, from $40 million in 2004 to about $35.7 million this year, because of the drop in the sales of gasoline and diesel.
The fuel tax – 19 cents a gallon for gasoline and 15 cents a gallon for diesel – goes to the state and about 39 percent of those revenues are returned to the Road Commissions based on a formula that includes population and miles of roads. “Those cuts in our funding, coupled with spiraling increases for everything from health care to fuel, forced us to trim our operations and that may affect how quickly we can get some streets and roads cleared,” Dirks said.
He added that motorists need to be careful during winter storms.
“We cannot stress enough for motorists to use good judgment, slow down and drive cautiously in snowy or icy weather,” he said.
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2010-04-14 - National Work Zone Awareness Week...2010-01-04 - Road Commission Elects New Chairman...2009-11-23 - EPOKE Systems Help Snow And Ice Removal...2009-11-20 - Romeo Plank Widening Complete...2009-10-28 - Mound Road Nativity Scene...2009-09-14 - Road Stimulus Projects...2009-01-12 - Commissioner Gillett...2009-01-08 - Expenses...
