When snow and ice come to the City of Knoxville, the Public Service Department plans to be well prepared to respond.

Department staff will hold Snow and Ice operations training from 7-9 a.m. Thursday, Dec. 3, in the upstairs Assembly Room of the Public Service Building located at 1400 Loraine St.

“This is a great opportunity for our crews to take a good look at our winter weather operations and prepare for what may lie ahead. We will be discussing several different topics from proper equipment maintenance with our fleet crews to proper driving techniques with our operators,” says Public Service Director Chad Weth.

The current snow removal plan prioritizes all streets within the City limits, giving first priority to major thoroughfares and hospital areas. The second priority is the connector streets that feed into major arterial routes, and any additional trouble spots such as hills and dangerous intersections. Once these streets are passable, the next focus becomes the minor collector and neighborhood streets.

“We are fully prepared for inclement weather. We currently have over 2,000 tons of salt, about 5,000 gallons of calcium chloride and have already made about 20,000 gallons of our brine solution used to pre-treat roads,” Weth says.

For more details on the City of Knoxville Public Service Department’s Snow and Ice Removal Plan, visit www.knoxvilletn.gov/snowplan.