TDOT ready to help motorists amid potential icy road conditions

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — With winter weather forecasted in the coming days, the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) is putting brine on roads and preparing to utilize its Highway Incident Response Unit, which provides emergency assistance to motorists.

“When we’re out there and it is below freezing and wet, it’s pretty hard to work out there,” Todd Stepp, a highway incident operator with TDOT, said.

Stepp has worked in some of Tennessee’s most dangerous and extreme conditions in recent memory. He has a passion for service and makes sure he’s ready to handle any type of emergency.

“I carry an extra jacket, an extra hoodie, an extra uniform, and an extra pair of boots,” Stepp said. “If the travelers are out there, I suggest kind of the same thing, at least an extra hoodie.”

In anticipation of icy roads and freezing temperatures, TDOT has drivers prepared to work overtime. Fourteen HELP trucks are currently being utilized to watch over Nashville roadways, but if necessary, more trucks will be used.

TDOT’s Transportation Management Center helps direct drivers to emergency areas 24 hours a day. The office has a large array of monitors showing TDOT cameras across the area, which helps personnel navigate drivers to emergencies.

Stepp urges drivers to make sure you have plenty of gas, slow down, and always wear appropriate clothing.

“If people are driving fast in these conditions, it’s just very hard to control the vehicle,” he said. “Other crazy things: extreme cold weather and people not dressed properly. They break down, they run out of gas, and I pull up on them and they’re shivering.”

Nashville and Davidson County are part of TDOT Region 3, which includes 25 other counties. According to the department, there are 281 salt trucks; 238 brine trucks; 67,310 tons of bulk salt; 477,275 gallons of salt brine; and 41 salt bins.

For more winter weather tips and travel information from TDOT, click here.