ITD urges drivers to use caution after a half-dozen snowplow crashes in just 2 weeks
The Idaho Transportation Department is urging drivers to use caution around snowplows after a spate of crashes around the state in the last two weeks.
In a news release, ITD officials said drivers have struck snowplows four times and forced the snow-clearing vehicles off roads on two other occasions. ITD said it had only eight snowplow crashes from November 2020 through March 2021.
Most of the crashes have been caused by drivers trying to pass a plow on the right, clipping the “wing plow” that extends past the right side of the snowplow. The department has urged drivers to never pass snowplows on the right.
“Lights alert drivers to the presence of wing plows, but during storms those lights and the wing plows can be obscured by plumes of snow,” ITD said.
The first crash occurred on Dec. 9 on Interstate 90 between Coeur d’Alene and Kellogg. A driver hit the snowplow near the Rose Lake exit while trying to pass on the right. Another North Idaho incident occurred Dec. 14, when a snowplow had to leave the road to avoid hitting a vehicle that lost control on U.S. 95 near Moscow.
Three of the crashes happened Dec. 16. Snowplows were hit on U.S. 20 near Ashton in East Idaho and on Interstate 84 near Twin Falls by drivers trying to pass on the right. Another snowplow had to leave the road to avoid hitting a driver who lost control on U.S. 95 near Winchester, between Lewiston and Grangeville.
Finally, a driver on Monday morning tried to pass a snowplow on the right near Osburn on I-90 between Kellogg and Wallace. The driver struck the plow and forced it off the road before fleeing the scene of the crash. Idaho State Police are investigating the incident.
ITD said no one has been injured in any of the snowplow incidents, but said each crash stretches its resources, as plows must be taken off the road and inspected for damage.
It’s not the only state agency that has warned of traffic safety issues. Idaho State Police have urged caution in recent weeks after a trooper was nearly hit by a pickup truck on I-84 while assisting another motorist.
This story was originally published December 20, 2021 at 12:21 PM.
