Now that colder weather has arrived, municipal highway departments are working to keep up with weather and road conditions in Central New York.

“Busy time of the year," said Syracuse Public Works Commissioner Jeremy Robinson. "We’re gonna be hopping around here like no other.” 

Whether you’re going to work or running errands, roadway obstacles can be the difference between making it to your destination or not. But when roads are covered in snow, it’s dangerous. That’s why city workers need quick access to the tools that can clear streets.

“It’s a barn that we keep our salt in," he said. "Our guys use it to refill our trucks. It’s beneficial.”

Trucks are in motion this week, pouring salt before another snowstorm makes its way to Syracuse. 

“The trucks are here, the equipment is here, our mechanics are here," Robinson said. "It’s just efficient to be here.” 

Salt lowers the freezing point of water, making it easier for plows to remove the snow from the ground. As the snow keeps coming, it becomes more and more vital. 

“It’s huge. We couldn’t do plowing without salt in the city of Syracuse," he said. "I know other municipalities in the southern part of the United States use sand and stuff like that. That wouldn’t work here.” 

The city uses two different types of salt. It has treated salt and rock salt. It really only uses treated salt when the temperature drops to single digits. Rock salt is what they use most of the time.