This week's winter storm was a heads up to prepare for winter driving conditions. Colorado Department of Transportation Maintenance workers have already been gearing up for the season, with crews switching to winter hours and plow trucks equipped for this season's snow and ice program. Crews operate Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. during the winter snow and ice season. When inclement weather sets in, crews switch to storm-weather 24-hour coverage (usually 12 hour shifts).

The Ridgway Maintenance Area includes patrols in Silverton, Ouray, Ridgway, Norwood, Nucla, Telluride and Paradox. The area has 28 maintenance workers and 42 pieces of snow and avalanche removal equipment. Thirteen trucks are equipped with liquid deicer applicator tanks. Other plow trucks will carry sand/salt and ice slicer for providing traction.

Durango maintenance crews take care of 110,984 lane-miles (the combined lengths of each lane on every highway in the region), including five mountain passes. During last winter, Ridgway Area maintenance crews plowed 469 total lane-miles. As well, crews sprayed 145,194 gallons of liquid deicer, spread 9,768.76 tons of sand/salt and ice slicer and spent 1,162.8 hours on avalanche control missions.

Winter Driving Tips

CDOT recommends that if you plan on driving in winter weather, please do the following:

Always keep the top half of your gas tank full. It can give you better traction and gives you a bigger margin of error if you get stuck and have to keep the engine running periodically to keep warm.

If you are stuck in a serious storm do not leave your car. Run the engine periodically and wait for help.

Carry blankets, water, a flashlight, a shovel, some nutrition bars or even candy bars for sustenance. Winterize your vehicle's safety kit by including extra blankets, sand to help gain traction in the event you become stuck on ice or snow, jumper cables, an ice scraper and lock de-icer.

Remember that 4-wheel drive does not mean 4-wheel stop. A 4-wheel drive vehicle will not stop any better in icy conditions.

Be sure of your route. Don't go exploring in the backcountry without some local knowledge, especially during a storm or when one is bearing down anywhere near your location.

Be sure you have good tires. The Colorado State Patrol recommends at least 1/8 of an inch tread depth. All season radials on a front-wheel-drive passenger vehicle are adequate for most situations. Snow tires on most rear-wheel drive vehicles are usually adequate. Chain restrictions in Colorado are most often put into effect for commercial vehicles (semi-trailer trucks) and do not usually affect passenger vehicles.

In poor visibility or even whiteout conditions, don't drive faster than you can see ahead. High speeds in poor or no visibility can lead to large chain reaction accidents. Remember you can't see around mountain curves and corners either.

In addition to these winter driving tips, CDOT reminds all motorists to respect winter weather, conduct a pre-trip inspection of your vehicle, leave extra distance between your automobile and others on the road, and never drink and drive. Of course, always buckle up.

Log on to www.cotrip.org for more winter driving information or winter driving conditions, or call CDOT's 24-hour road condition hotline at 877/315-ROAD.