NDOT to Begin Pre-treating Nashville Roads Tomorrow Morning

Nashville Department of Transportation and Multimodal Infrastructure (NDOT) crews will begin pre-treating roadways tomorrow morning, January 22, in advance of potential winter weather forecast for Middle Tennessee this weekend. While forecasts remain uncertain, NDOT is closely monitoring conditions and preparing for various winter weather scenarios. Pre-treating roadways is an essential part of NDOT's plan, getting ahead of potential snow, ice, or mixed precipitation before it falls.

"This year, we have five more snowplows added to our fleet, bringing our total to 45," said Nashville Mayor Freddie O'Connell. "In fact, 36 of our 45 total snowplows are new trucks. We're pre-treating our roads and when snow hits, they'll be keeping our local roads salted and plowed - including the additional 600 miles of new routes added last year that allowed the plows to get deeper into neighborhoods. Many of us noticed roads getting plowed that we'd never touched before last year - we want to keep that going. But each storm is different. Temperatures and type of precipitation make a huge impact on how quickly we can clear the roads, so we appreciate the patience of Nashvillians as we work to keep our roads safe."

Phillip Jones, NDOT's Deputy Director, says the department is prepared to respond to any upcoming winter weather.

"All NDOT winter truck operators are trained on our snow removal routes, and we have coordinated with the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT), WeGo Transit, and other Metro agencies to ensure our response is effective and efficient," said Jones. "We have loaded our brine storage tanks with salt brine in preparation for tomorrow's pre-treatment of routes and salt bins are filled to capacity."

For the 2025-2026 winter season, NDOT crews are equipped with the following:

• 45 snowplow trucks (36 of these are brand new and state-of-the-art)
• 9,300 tons of salt
• 100,000 gallons of brine solution
• 40,000 gallons of calcium chloride
• 80 identified snow removal routes

NDOT will utilize a comprehensive list of primary, secondary, and post-secondary snow removal routes to maximize efficiency and cover as much of the county as possible. Like last year, post-secondary routes will replace call-in requests, but reports can still be made to hubNashville and will be used for data gathering and evaluation to inform future winter weather response.

To report a non-emergency issue affecting a Metro Nashville street, visit hub.nashville.gov.