Across the State of New York over 500 winter maintenance jobs were added to the State’s Department of Transportation. The initiative to help with day to day tasks such as plowing and making sure roadways are safe for travel.

On Thursday, Spectrum News got an exclusive behind the scenes look at what it takes to get these workers on the road.

"We go through a bunch of safety videos and once that is complete we will get them out here in the truck,” said Jim Piccola, Regional Engineer for the Mohawk Valley.

It’s not that easy though, with state mandates in effect these new hires will have to go through roughly a month of training before they can hit the roadways. Piccola says drivers will have to bear 5 to 6 snowfalls with a trainer, before they can receive a certification and go out on their own.

On Thursday, new hires were getting trained at the Oneida East Residency in New Hartford. Their mission was to learn how to change snow plow blades, however that will not be the only thing these workers will learning over the span of the next few weeks.

"Not only with the snowplow itself but also they are able to operate other pieces of equipment like the loader," said Piccola. The loader which supplies 10 ton of salt to the trucks, to keep roadways dry and not slick.

The state reinforces why this help is so needed during the winter months.

"Yeah know you get two or three inches an hour. These guys are really busting their humps to get their beats covered,” said Piccola. “Like you see now we are starting to get some snow and it is early November, it can be like last year all the way into early april."

Qualified candidates interested in keeping our highways safe this winter can find more information about the positions available and how to apply at https://www.dot.ny.gov/jobs/perm_positions/highway-maintenance-worker.