WASHINGTON — Just shoveling your driveway can feel like a monumental task, so imagine having to plow all the state roads across Maryland and then haul tons of snow away, truckload by truckload.
Tom Fountain, an engineer with the Maryland State Highway Administration, didn’t have to imagine it — he was tasked with clearing the state roads in his region, which includes Prince George’s and Montgomery counties.
On Tuesday, when he appeared before the Montgomery County Council for a briefing, Fountain was quizzed on the state’s performance in clearing roads in the county.
Councilmember Marc Elrich asked Fountain why the state didn’t invest in some of those fancy snow-melting machines: about the size of a truck trailer, they seem to make dealing with tons of snow a cinch.
Fountain said there are still logistical concerns: crews would still have to lift tons of snow into the melters, so there’s still a need for backhoes and other equipment to supplement plows.
Then there’s the issue of stormwater.
“You know, all that melted snow … we’re overloading our storm drain system,” Fountain says.
“If we’re dealing with subfreezing temperatures, all we’re doing is creating icy conditions.”
But here’s the deal breaker.
“They burn 400 gallons of fuel an hour,” he adds.
That last bit of information drew audible gasps from the council members, who didn’t press further on the purchase of the melters.
