City tests winter weather equipment

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - On Wednesday, they tested the winter weather equipment to make sure they're ready.

The first storm could be a sign of things to come, so the city says it's imperative that the equipment gets tested.

"Just keep going around and spreading salt and making sure the roads are good for the public," said a crew member driving a truck with a plow attached.

Crews performed their yearly dry run. The test was planned months in advance, but with the weather expected by the end of the week, Director of Municipal Development Michael Riordan says timing is everything.   

"This dry run is a little closer to a storm event than we usually have," said Riordan.

The city's had winter trouble before, so early prepping is important.

"Last year, we had a lot of ice events without the snow. And our salt supplies got critically low last year," said Riordan.

Now, crew members are practicing their routes and making sure everything is restocked.

There are four satellite locations around Albuquerque with massive salt domes. It is the most powerful tool at the city's disposable.

It's three parts salt and one part cinder, a brown crushed rock, so if you see it on the road, you know they've been there.

The city has 45 trucks that can have snow plows attached. Thirty-three of those trucks are equipped to carry the salt.

City workers say they're ready for this winter blast,

"The best thing we can do for the citizens is be prepared, and that's what the city's here for," said Riordan.

Crews who drive the trucks say its difficult driving and want drivers to watch out for them on the roads.

The roads the city targets are the busier, two-way roads. The trucks don't go through residential neighborhoods.