(Des Moines) As summer-like temperatures persist, it’s important to prepare for the upcoming winter.
The Iowa Department of Transportation aims to keep the roads clear during winter weather and provide essential information for safe travel.
The Iowa DOT offers these tips to prepare for the winter months:
- Winterize your vehicle: Ensure your vehicle is in good condition by checking wipers, hoses, batteries, alternators, belts, tires, brakes, exhaust systems, lights, and fluid levels. Ensure the heater and defroster work well and keep your gas tank full.
- Create a winter survival kit: Include essential items such as booster cables, flashlights with batteries, blankets, warm clothes, nonperishable food, candles, matches, a snow shovel, and a mobile phone with a charger.
- Use technology for better travel decisions: The “Winter Road Conditions” layer on 511ia.org, along with live images from snowplows and roadside cameras, can help you decide whether it’s safe to travel.
- Brush on winter driving skills: Remember to wear your seat belt, turn off cruise control, adjust your speed for conditions, and make gradual and smooth driving maneuvers on slick roads. Following these tips can help you stay safe and prepared during winter.
DOT’s 100 maintenance garages employ 1,072 full-time equipment operators, mechanics, and supervisors. They are hiring up to 633 temporary employees this winter season to keep the agency’s 925 trucks, 40 motor graders, 33 tow plows, and ten heavy-duty, self-propelled snowblowers on the road during winter weather.
