We are ready for winter

Officially, the winter season for motorway services begins on 1 November. However, as of mid-October, all winter maintenance equipment and operating personnel have been ready to undertake both preventive and intervention winter operations. Indeed, morning frosts can be dangerous for drivers unprepared for the changing weather.

The first stage of winter maintenance is in force on all motorways in Poland. This means that the equipment must be on the track within half an hour after the snowfall begins. The carriageway of the motorway must be cleared of snow within 2 hours from the end of snowfall during the day and within 4 hours from the end of precipitation at night. That is why it is so important to secure the cast on ready-to-go equipment.

In addition to equipment and people ready to take immediate action, we are also assisted by additional detailed weather forecasts. We compare them on an ongoing basis with readings from our own weather stations, located along the 256-kilometer section of the A2 concession motorway and with information obtained from our motorway patrols. All this is done in order to send our salt spreaders on the road as soon as possible if necessary. – explains Krzysztof Golis of Autostrada Eksploatacja, the operator of the A2 concession section.

At present, on the 255-kilometer-long section of Autostrada Wielkopolska, there are 41 salt spreaders, 200 employees of the maintenance department and nearly 13,500 tons of salt in readiness to undertake winter maintenance, located in 5 warehouses along the Świecko-Konin concession section of A2. Should it turn out that these supplies are not enough, additional emergency salt supplies will be used.

In winter conditions, rushing can be especially dangerous. Therefore, equipment working on the road must not be overtaken, although it may extend trip time.

Salt spreaders drive at speeds of up to 60 km/h. Therefore, some drivers, despite the danger, take risks and overtake working equipment. However, it is important to be aware that the road is not yet cleared of snow in front of the salt spreader and driving on it can be dangerous, warns Piotr Szczap, head of the Operation and Maintenance Center in Sługocin.

Additionally, snow coming out from under the plows can not only damage the car, but also significantly complicate overtaking. Salt spreaders operating in the Świecko-Konin concession section of Autostrada Wielkopolska are equipped with plows which have a span of up to 8 meters. When conducting intervention operations, equipment usually moves in pairs. This allows the snow to be cleared from as large a part of the road as possible in the shortest possible time.

People and equipment operating on the motorway during snow removal operations are working for the safety of motorists and to ensure good driving conditions. Drivers can also help the maintenance services carry out the operation more efficiently, by observing safe driving rules and following salt spreaders without overtaking.

We should also remember that even the best-maintained road infrastructure is no substitute for a driver’s common sense and good vehicle preparation. Before winter sets in, replace the tires with winter tires and the windshield washer fluid with one that doesn’t freeze in cold temperatures. It’s also a good idea to put a warm blanket in the trunk, and take a thermal mug with a hot drink with you when you set off. During snowfall, it is a good idea to slow down, increase the distance from the preceding vehicle and maintain constant concentration on the road.