Township and school leaders attending a standing-room-only Road Commission meeting Tuesday evening, November 11, wanted to know what they can expect in winter road maintenance. Participants wanted to know how shrinking state road funds will impact township roads, emergency services, and school bus travel.

This winter, only sand with a minimum amount of salt will be spread on hills, curves, and intersections, said Manager Dirk Heckman. County crews will be working Monday through Friday with three staggered shifts beginning at 5 a.m., 6 a.m., and 7 a.m. and ending at 1:30 p.m., 2:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m., depending on weather conditions.

The lack of funding will result in fewer plowing hours. Unless the county receives four to six inches of snow on evenings or weekends, he said, the roads will not be plowed until the next scheduled shift.

The commission also will run a day and night shift to meet contractual obligations with the Michigan Department of Transportation to maintain all of M-134 and a portion of M-129. The shifts run seven days a week from 5 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and from 6 p.m. to 2:30 a.m., unless conditions warrant crews to remain on the roads until the next shift begins.

Mr. Heckman reminded people that it is illegal for individuals to plow snow across county roads or obstruct views with snow piles at intersections.

Moran Township trustee Mark Spencer asked where the snowfall would be measured and who would be monitoring road conditions. His concern is that snowfall varies widely in the county and one area can get four inches of snow while anther township may not receive any.

The responsibility will fall to the area foremen, said Mr. Heckman.

"It's going to be largely a judgment call whether or not to call people out," he said. "If it's Sunday night and we get six inches of snow, well, you might not see a plow until first thing Monday morning."

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By the time crews are called in, they probably would not get to their assigned garage much sooner than they were scheduled.

"There's largely a judgment call on how people are called in," he continued. "How much snowfall there is and how cold it is, and if you get a real heavy snow, you might see plow trucks at two or three inches. If it's light, it might be more than six inches."

Mike Springsteen, superintendent of St. Ignace Area Schools, said school buses are on the road by 5:45 a.m., and knowing plows will be out by 5 a.m. helps the school.

During winter storms, a decision to hold classes or to close school for the day is typically made by 5:30 a.m., he said.

Mr. Heckman agreed to give Mr. Springsteen a road condition report.

"I hate to get involved too heavily in your decision-making process whether or not to decide to cancel school," said Mr. Heckman, "but at least I can tell you what the roads are like."

Bryce Tracy, the county's 9-1-1 coordinator, asked how the county would respond to emergency calls.

"We will respond to emergency calls," said Mr. Heckman. "You may not get what is asked."

Usually, emergency calls coming from law enforcement include a request for salt, he said. In those cases, the road commission will investigate the situation.

Road Commissioner Les Livermore said an icy road created from emergency vehicles responding to a fire, for example, would bring county trucks to the scene to maintain the road.

"But if the sheriff or deputy calls and says, 'Hey, Worth Road is really icy,' but there is no emergency, then we're not coming out," Mr. Livermore said.

Mr. Tracy noted that the policy is the same as in past years and he just wanted verification there were no changes.

"One thing we would like to advocate is that we are a road maintenance agency and we are not emergency responders," said Mr. Heckman.

Also, said Mr. Livermore, if plowing is done because of a snowfall over a weekend, not all roads may be plowed, but major arteries would be cleared and side roads would be taken care of during normal shifts.

"We have to work more economically, or we will cease to function," he said.

Townships now may have to contribute to the cost of road safety projects, the commission reported. Commissioners discussed changing the policy in October when they realized that the $250,000 cost of safety projects slated for 2009 could not be funded by the Road Commission without township participation.

Residents asked for assistance through the use of a grader in smoothing the rough driving surface on gravel roads, including St. Ignace Road and Three Mile Road. Commissioners said they would alert foremen to the situation.

Marquette Township Supervisor John Kronemeyer asked the commission to focus more on maintaining roads in his township.

"Some day you're just going to have to stop doing construction and get graders on the roads," he said.

Jarmco Construction of Saginaw is asking for final payment of its work on the salt shed at the East District garage, if the work is accepted by engineering firm R.S. Scott and Associates of St. Ignace.

The contractor expects to be finished with the project before the commission's next meeting.

Mr. Livermore said he is not in favor of pre-approval. The commission meets every two weeks and he wants to see the final paperwork before he approves payment, he said.

No vote was taken on the matter, with only two commissioners in attendance. Chair Frank Luepnitz attended the meeting, although Commissioner Paul Amacher was absent.

Contracts have not been signed for the two open foreman positions, said Mr. Luepnitz. Hugh Bigelow was offered the position of West District foreman and Terry Cece was offered the position of East District foreman.

Commissioners agreed to continue to meet every other Tuesday at 1:30 p.m. and to continue to hold quarterly evening meetings in 2009. They also decided to cancel their Tuesday, December 9, meeting.

The commission next meets Tuesday, November 25, at 1:30 p.m. at the Road Commission building on North State Street in St. Ignace.