BOZEMAN — Based on current road conditions, it may not seem like it — but winter has arrived. The Montana Department of Transportation is gearing up its plows for the inevitable snow season.
“This portion is just your standard everyday plow truck,” said Phillip Shepherd, a tow plow operator, while showing equipment.
Shepherd, originally from Tennessee, has worked with heavy equipment his entire life. He moved to Montana four years ago.
“I joined up with MDT and loved every minute of it,” Shepherd said.
His tow plow is different from a regular plow truck.
“Instead of just doing one lane, I’m clearing two lanes,” Shepherd said. “The most that I’ve ever cleared in a shift is about 460 miles.”
Shepherd lives outside Columbus, Montana, but this winter he will be working in Bozeman.
“They needed help in Bozeman this year. For as big of a section as it is, they just don’t have enough people hired right now to keep the roads cleared off by themselves,” he said.
From Tennessee to Montana snow removal - Meet the tow plow operator helping keep Bozeman roads safe this winter. His specialized equipment can clear 2 lanes at once
Shepherd will help MDT’s Bozeman division for 12 weeks, on and off. He’s not alone.
“In the last few years, we’ve had rotating staff from across the state volunteer to come to Bozeman to help us. Because of the high cost of living, staffing has really been a struggle for us in this area,” said Josh Ritchie, Bozeman maintenance chief for MDT.
Ritchie said they spend nearly the whole year preparing for winter, but staffing demands consume the most time.
“We have eight rotators coming in per week. Last year we had 15,” he said.
That drop is due to increased staffing. Last year, MDT had about a 30% vacancy rate. This year, that number fell to 4%.
“Our new staff are really helping us get up to speed so we can kind of handle things mostly in-house in Bozeman in the future,” Ritchie said.
The Bozeman division covers roughly 4,311 plow miles, stretching from West Yellowstone to just outside East Helena.
Another major part of preparation is gathering materials.
“We have spent over $1 million on sand already,” Ritchie said, noting that about 30 million pounds are stored in the Bozeman yard alone.
For Shepherd, the effort is worth it.
“When you take this job here, you have to care about public safety. If we don’t do our jobs the way we’re supposed to and take pride in our work, people get hurt,” he said.
