With winter weather upon Mid-Missouri, the Callaway County Road and Bridge Department announced their snow removal and ice control policy.
The policy pertains to the 820 miles of county-maintained roads.
According to county regulations, plows will not begin snow removal unless the snow has stopped, or county officials believe they can remove adequate amounts of snow.
The County Highway Administrator or Road and Bridge foreman will decide if emergency removal is needed.
When icy conditions affect travel, ice operations will begin, and snow removal begins after snow accumulation has reached at least two inches.
The snow plows are directed to clean one lane in each direction and perform cinder operations at problem areas throughout the county. They will also clean up the roadways once the sun or cinder has melted the snow.
If snow falls during the week, plows and other equipment will be on the road by 6 a.m. There is a reduced amount of service on weekends because of less cars and limited resources.
Most routes will also not be covered between 5 p.m. and 5 a.m. because of staffing and budgetary concerns.
The Road and Bridge Department priorities place major county highways with heavy traffic volume first, with medium volume county roads that have school bus and mail routes second.
Low volume roads that serve school bus routes are lowest on the priority list.
The policy stresses that the county will not remove snow from private drives, and that snow may be deposited in private drives from the plows.
If a vehicle is stranded, a plow operator will contact law enforcement or emergency personnel, but will only help the motorist if law enforcement directs them to or the vehicle poses a danger to the traveling public. Operators will also help motorists if the vehicle is in the way of snow removal operations.
Night-time emergency removal will be coordinated through the Sheriff's Department from the Emergency Operations Center.
The Road and Bridge Department Policy states that unpredictable weather conditions and restricted budgets for the department make it impossible to ensure 100 percent safety during winter months and that driving conditions will still be hazardous even with the best services provided by the department.