NDOT Crews are on Standby to Begin Treating Roads When Winter Weather Arrives

Nashville Department of Transportation and Multimodal Infrastructure (NDOT) crews are on standby in advance of winter weather forecast for Middle Tennessee this weekend. Crews have already pre-treated primary, secondary, and post-secondary routes with brine. Trucks are being switched over from brine solution to salt, with crews on call to respond when the weather arrives. While there is still a good amount of uncertainty around timing, precipitation type, and precipitation amounts, the event is trending toward higher ice accumulations. The department is preparing to respond to an ice and snow event.

"Our snowplows will continue to cover the additional 600 miles of roadway we added last year, but every winter storm is different," said Nashville Mayor Freddie O'Connell. "Two years ago, I'm sure many of us remember the frigid temperatures and layer of ice that made some roads difficult to completely clear. No matter what kind of winter weather we get this weekend, we certainly appreciate Nashvillians' patience as our experts at NDOT assess the best way to treat our roads."

Phillip Jones, NDOT's Deputy Director, is encouraging residents to stay off roads this weekend if at all possible.

"Clearing primary routes is our first priority in a snow and ice event, and this is essential to critical emergency response functions," said Jones. "We are asking everyone to stay home and stay off roads if at all possible. Give our crews plenty of space and plenty of time to work and get roads as safe and passable as possible."

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.