A winter severity index for the state of Maine.

PDFTech Report42979Winter maintenanceWeather forecastingWeather conditionsCost effectivenessDeicing chemicalsSnowfallSnowplowsMaineMaine. Dept. of TransportationMarquis, BrianNouhan, VictorColson, StephenPayeur, JoeMaine. Dept. of Transportation. Transportation Research DivisionUS Transportation CollectionWinter maintenance in the Sate of Maine consumes around twenty percent of the Bureau ofMaintenance and Operations budget each year. Costs are directly related to the length and severityof a winter season. In addition, the cost of materials and equipment increases every year.Maintenance has been experimenting with new methods, materials, and equipment to offset theincreased cost. Up until 1998 the Maine Department of Transportation had been using a reactiveapproach to winter maintenance. This involved placing a mix of sand and salt on the road during astorm, then clean-up with salt only after the storm. In 1997 the Department experimented with aproactive method which consists of placing salt on the roadway as close to the beginning of thestorm as possible followed by continued applications of salt and plowing when necessary. Thismethod was very effective at keeping the roads bare during a storm and appeared to be less costly.By 2001 most Regions were using the proactive method.With the switch from sand/salt mix to salt only it was necessary to upgrade the equipment to monitorand distribute salt more effectively. A number of spinners and hopper upgrades were experimentedwith. Evaluating each piece of equipment was based on observations and opinions. This method ofevaluation is good but can be subjected to personal opinions.Another tool that would help determine cost-effectiveness is a Winter Severity Index (WSI). A WSIrates a winter season between 0 for a mild winter to 100 for an extremely severe winter. Indexnumbers are generated from daily snowfall amounts and temperature. A WSI is a consistent ratingthat can be used to gauge equipment effectiveness during a winter season or a storm.The Maine Winter Severity Index is a good indicator of seasonal winter conditions and correlateswell with the quantity of materials used during a winter season. Correlation with seasonal costs arenot as effective due to premium hourly pay and call outs for winter maintenance outside the normalworking hours and the rising cost of materials