MISSOULA — So far this month, the Montana Department of Transportation reports eight snow plows have been hit by other vehicles on the roads.
With winter conditions impacting travel, getting to a destination safely is the top priority; the Montana Department of Transportation (MDT) has some helpful tips to ensure you do just that.
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You can only control how you drive, so MDT says keeping a safe distance behind other drivers is key. Especially when it comes to plows, which tend to operate at slower speeds.
Since multiple plows were hit by other drivers this month, those are now out of commission until repairs can be made.
MDT says drivers should not pass plows unless absolutely necessary. They note to never pass a TowPlow which are 26-foot wide trailers that allow the driver to remove two lanes of snow in one go. Plows tend to pull over for drivers to pass when conditions are safe enough to do so.
Plows have green and orange flashing lights alerting drivers to slow down for a the vehicle working ahead on the road. Sometimes the lights are all you see, or nothing at all since plows kick up snow clouds impacting visibility.
However, MDT advises not to drive through the snow cloud as you could strike the extended wing of a plow or hit another plow working in tandem.
They say to drive with headlights on — day or night — no matter the color of your vehicle or weather conditions. S
Sometimes, icy spots can pop up out of nowhere, so driving slower and allotting extra travel time is an important practice.
The latest Montana road conditions from the MDT can be found here.
