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School Days, Deep Snow are Priorities for Montezuma County Snowplows

Sneeuwschuiver
/
Creative Commons

The storm that brought a little wet snow over the New Year’s holiday had some Montezuma County residents complaining about slippery roads.

But county road supervisor Rob Englehart tells KSJD his department has a longstanding policy that plows don’t come out unless there’s at least 3 inches of the wet stuff on the ground. Trying to scrape a thin layer of slush off gravel roads can damage them. Also, Englehart says a plowing priority is safety for school buses and kids, but that isn’t a consideration on holidays. The road department took a 10 percent budget cut this year as part of a county-wide reduction and Englehart says that has meant extra scrutiny about when to shell out for overtime. But he says his workers have been busy since the holiday. He adds that the department takes calls from concerned citizens and will investigate specific problems.

Gail Binkly is a career journalist who has worked for the Colorado Springs Gazette and Cortez Journal, and was the editor of the Four Corners Free Press, based in Cortez.
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