Plowing Frankfort streets since 4:30 p.m. Friday, Street Department crews have been down every road in town, utilizing both Zonar road work tracking software and a tandem process to ensure quicker, more efficient snow removal, Street Superintendent Jason Forsythe announced.“Our number one priority is clearing City streets as fast and efficiently as possible to help ensure the safety of our residents, both motorists and pedestrians. We salted the roads early on and plowed the main roads from 4:30 – 8:30 p.m. yesterday. From 8:30 p.m. last night to around 12:30 a.m. this morning, we utilized a tandem process, meaning two trucks hit each of our four quadrants of the City, following each other to make sure all the roadways were clear.
“For example, myself and Mark Payne plowed the southwest quadrant of the City going north-south from Walnut Street to the Fairgrounds and east-west from Jackson Street to Holiday Road. The tandem method allows team members in each pair of trucks to help each other out so our roads are cleared as quickly and effectively as possible.
“All but two of our 15 trucks have a GPS on them connected to our Zonar tracking software system. Our two newest trucks were purchased after we bought the Zonar software, but were also performing the tandem process from 8:30 p.m. – 12:30 a.m.
“Our Zonar system is engaged every time our trucks go out and with it, we can track when plows are up and down, when salt spreaders are on and off and entire drive times including top and average speeds. It also shows each truck number and the quadrant that driver is working in. With this system, we verify every street is being cleared and know when the work was done,” Forsythe said.
Four team members cleared downtown streets for several hours starting around 12:30 a.m. and used the department’s gator to clean sidewalks in the City’s central business district.
“The downtown looks great and we are working to ensure the rest of the community is in great shape as well. The combination of our sophisticated, comprehensive data tracking and the hard work of our dedicated crews means we have this latest snow event well handled,” Forsythe said.