The Ohio Department of Transportation's snow plows are now on the popular maps app, Waze.
"You can check out what's going on on your routes, within that ... radius of where you are," District 8 Public Information Officer Kathleen Fuller tells WVXU. "When you're on Waze, you can see what we're doing, and it'll show you where, (and) when our trucks are out."
Fuller says a truck icon will appear on Waze when an ODOT truck is actively clearing a roadway — meaning the truck's plow is down, its flashing lights are on and it's moving at a speed of under 35 miles per hour.
"Basically it's to help raise awareness for motorists, to give them some idea of what is happening," she adds.
ODOT notes the icons aren't a plow tracking program, though some communities like Cincinnati have implemented plow trackers.
For now, the service is only available on Waze and not other mapping apps like Google Maps or Apple Maps. Fuller explains that's because ODOT's existing software dovetails smoothly with the Waze platform.
"It ties in well to our GPS AVL system that we use with our trucks and also our work zone management. It was an easy way to marry our application to their application," she says.
Fuller also points people to the OHGO app and website for real-time traffic information at any time.
ODOT reminds drivers to give plows room to work by staying 2 to 3 car lengths behind a plow and trying not to pass.
Statewide, ODOT employs nearly 3,000 drivers who typically work 12-hour shifts during snow and ice events. They maintain more than 43,000 lane miles of state and U.S. routes outside municipalities and all interstates in Ohio, except the Ohio Turnpike.
The agency created this handy, tongue-in-cheek video to help people determine which roads it does and doesn't maintain:
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