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ITD winter maintenance efforts praised

During this record-breaking winter, ITD maintenance crews have been working double time to keep roads clear by implementing a “Swarm the Storm” mentality. By staffing according to the forecast, sheds have made the most of their resources.

That hard work has not gone unnoticed by the public! Through the ITD Facebook and Twitter accounts, we have received many messages of thanks and well-wishes for our maintenance crews throughout the state. Below, we’ve selected a few of those messages to share with you.

Kari Cummings:
Thanks guys in Valley County you do a great job keeping the roads clear.

Tammy Dyal:
Having lived in Western Oregon for 43 years, Idaho DOT is extremely impressive in how they take care of the roads during snow. IDOT has this down to a fantastic and efficient science. We are very thankful for (and impressed with) the great job y'all do both with prevention and with road cleanup after each snow. Very thankful for your hard work & efficiency!!

Fernando Martinez:
My family and I would like to send our gratitude to all the hard working crew from the Idaho Transportation Department out of Clark County. As visitors from California we are not accustomed to snowy weather conditions and ITD from Clark County have made the road conditions very safe for my family and I. Traveling through this holiday we are very grateful and would like to say that we appreciate all the hard working men and women who've worked throughout this holiday keeping the roads safe for mobility. Thank you ITD!!

Then there’s this touching story from Katrina Lucier:
“I want to send out a special thank you to all the ITD employees. My husband and I drove over 400 miles from Boise to Missoula going over Lolo Pass on Hwy 12 on Tuesday, December 27th, which was a wicked day for winter advisories. Along with us we had our 2 year old and our 1 year old. The trip took us about 10 hours - it was not smooth sailing. However, we made it home safe and sound and all thanks to the heroic efforts of the ITD. For those of you that do not know, Hwy 12 east going from Kooskia, ID to Lolo Pass is a long, curvy climb gaining about 3'040 feet in elevation. There is a sign stating 'winding roads next 99 miles' soon after entering this point. To top it off, there is no cell phone reception and no real town to speak of, at least not one where you could easily find help or shelter. Our only line of defense was the ITD. As we passed downed tree after downed tree, and all during the very beginning of this trek, we realized the very real possibility of not making home. It was after the sun was completely down and the snow was falling hard that we got completely stopped by a pine that had fallen and was blocking the Hwy in both directions. I could see the silhouette of man hacking at the tree with what looked like a hatchet. Both my little ones were crying and getting frustrated with still being restrained in their car seats. This was going to be a long night. Suddenly, an ITD snowplow employee went walking past us with a chain saw in his hand. We were saved!! In no time our hero had cut up that huge behemoth of a tree and cleared the road. Only 75 more miles to the pass. As we continued our journey we witnessed several accidents and semi's that got buried in a snow bank or rolled over against the mountain side. Every time I saw an ITD plowman there to the rescue or on their way to help. That's when it dawned on me - this was just another [crazy] night of work for them. Wow. What I saw as a scary drive was for them just their normal work routine. My heart goes out to all those truckers who got caught in the storm. Without them we wouldn't get our supplies we need and our economy would shut down. But without our transportation departments like that of the ITD, our truckers would not be able to make it over those deadly mountain passes. Thank you again snowplow employees of the ITD! You are our unsung hero's of Winter's nights.”

These are just a few of the many thanks we’ve received through social media.

In addition, this one came in via regular, ole snail mail, from Gretchen Sherlin and Mike Harkins:
"We wish to take time to thank the many employees and crews who work tirelessly to keep the roads clear of ice, snow and debris, especially in remote areas like Lowman & Stanley. Your emoployees are professional, courteous and hard-working in some very adverse weather conditions. You are truly one of the best departments in the state of Idaho, and we appreciate you."

This feedback speaks to the importance and impactfulness of ITD's winter maintenance activities.

This winter has already been a nasty one, with record snowfall and low temperatures. However, crews have done an excellent job of keeping the roads as safe as possible for the traveling public. As ambassadors for ITD, a big thanks to all of the plow teams. Keep up the great work!