Caltrans, the California Highway Patrol and California Trucking Association joined forces on Wednesday to discuss safe driving tips in winter weather.
The meeting showed how the partnership keeps commerce moving through Donner Summit when winter weather hits.
Caltrans will be at 100% staff the weekend before Christmas and will be ready to use equipment like truck pushers to push semi-trucks out of traffic and through snow, in case they were to get stuck.
Richard Coyle, with Devine Intermodal Trucking, says more than 3,500 big rigs traverse Donner Summit each and every day and as soon as a winter storm hits, the roads can come to a standstill when a truck gets stuck.
“It goes up and down the pass throughout the course of the storm and pushes trucks that might need a little extra help getting started in the heavy snow," says Coyle.
The California Trucking Association is the organization who finances the pusher trucks. The group then leases it to Caltrans for just a dollar a year.
Caltrans is then responsible for maintaining the truck and putting a driver inside.
Peter Mann with the California Highway Patrol says they work closely with Caltrans to make sure traffic is moving smoothly during a winter storm.
"We'll ask our dispatch that radio's up here to Caltrans dispatch to say can you get us a pusher truck going because we know this thing needs just a little yank or a little push," says Mann.
Dave Wood with Caltrans says as hard as they work to keep the roads safe and clear for drivers during a storm, dangers can still exist.
He says that's when it is up to travelers to be prepared when they hit the roads.
“You have to have a car in good running condition, you have to make sure that you have warm clothing, maybe eat a meal and bring some water, be alert and put your devices down," says Wood.
