Richfield - The Ohio Turnpike is gearing up for the snow and ice that is headed Northeast Ohio's way this winter.
136-point inspections are being done at all eight garages across the turnpike for all 100-plus snow plows ahead of the winter season.
"We take safety on our roadways serious, and need to make sure everything is up to code and good to go for our customers," says the Turnpike's chief engineer Chris Matta.
The plows will cover the near 1,395 lane miles, 31 interchanges and 14 service plazas on the turnpike this winter. On average, crews use 65,000 tons of salt each year and 83,500 gallons of liquid chemicals on the roadway.
Last winter, crews worked over 22,000 hours to attend to over 130 winter storm events.
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