FAQs • Douglas County, WI • CivicEngage

During winter maintenance, why is salt used on the State highways and a sand / salt mixture used on the county highways?: The Wisconsin Department of Transportation is the authority in charge of maintenance of the State highways and their statewide policy is to use straight rock salt to assist in melting ice and snow from those pavements. Douglas County is the authority in charge of the maintenance of the County highways and that policy requires use of a manufactured sand / salt mixture with 5-10% salt. Using only the salt increases the de-icing rate of the roadways, but at a much higher cost than the sand / salt mixture. The price per ton of salt is $69 and the price per ton for the sand/salt mixture is only $17 per ton.

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Highway

1. What time of day does the snow plowing and winter maintenance begin during a snowstorm?: Typically, the snow plow drivers are in their trucks and on their designated snow plow route at 4:00 am. This occurs when the storm is a multi-day event or when the snow fall continues beyond the time when the snow plow driver ends their day on the previous day. Otherwise, their normal daily start time is 7:00 am. If the storm is continuing or conditions are poor enough to warrant it, the drivers will remain on their routes until 8:00 pm.

2. During winter maintenance, why is salt used on the State highways and a sand / salt mixture used on the county highways?: The Wisconsin Department of Transportation is the authority in charge of maintenance of the State highways and their statewide policy is to use straight rock salt to assist in melting ice and snow from those pavements. Douglas County is the authority in charge of the maintenance of the County highways and that policy requires use of a manufactured sand / salt mixture with 5-10% salt. Using only the salt increases the de-icing rate of the roadways, but at a much higher cost than the sand / salt mixture. The price per ton of salt is $69 and the price per ton for the sand/salt mixture is only $17 per ton.

3. What is manufactured sand?: Manufactured sand is material that is screened through one-fourth-inch screens to remove anything larger than one-fourth-inch in diameter. This significantly reduces the risk of vehicular damage.

4. When is the monthly Highway Committee meeting?: The public meeting is typically held at 9:30 am on the first Wednesday of each month at the Hawthorne Highway Department facility. Interested individuals should contact the Highway Department Office at (715) 374-2575 to confirm that the meeting has not been cancelled or rescheduled.