Extra crews helped Indy clear roads

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - Drivers who have been out on the roads may have noticed many of the streets and side roads are drivable — clear of snow and ice.

The amount of snow central Indiana received brought out extra crews. The last time this many crews fought snow in Indianapolis was Feb. 17, 2010 when the city recorded 6.4 inches of snow.

Thomas Haley reported to work Wednesday night to battle the blizzard of 2012. Just after all the snow stopped falling he loaded up in his truck to hit the road.

"This truck is a big truck; it's a heavy truck full of salt. It'll go pretty much where you want to put it," Haley said.

Haley is one of 118 Department of Public Works drivers who helped plow downtown roads and city streets covered in heavy snow overnight.

"I like doing it because that's what I like to do. I like to plow snow," he said.

When the snow stopped falling Wednesday, more than 7 1/2 inches blanketed the metro area. That meant the city cleaned not only major streets, but also residential ones.   

By daybreak Thursday many of those side and residential roads were drivable as well. A big reason for that: Indy Snow Force used 50 contractors with 350 individual plowing units to tackle certain residential neighborhoods. Those added plows allowed the team to plow additional roads that wouldn't normally see the sight of a blade.

"There was so much snow coming down, we couldn't keep up with," Haley said.

Haley said a big reason why the many of the snow plow drivers were able to keep up with the snow and clear the roads has to do with little traffic out when the snow started coming down.

"I do the B shift because there's not as many people out so it's easier to plow, easier to push stuff back," he said.

Also, DPW instructed all of the drivers to salt roads once they were plowed. That helped keep some of the snow and ice from building up on the roads Thursday morning.

Indy Snow Force will have 90 drivers report for duty at 11 p.m. Thursday after the forecast has called for low temperatures.

Drivers will salt roads to prevent from re-freezing, according to a release. Crews will also continue plowing snow that remains on the roads.