When the weather gets icy this winter, it will be up to a select group of workers to make sure those roads, bridges and highways remain safe.

Both the state Department of Transportation and municipalities will have workers plowing snow and salting the roads at all hours.

It's a difficult job even for the experienced driver.

“Every storm is different,” said Bob Skrak, the Butler County maintenance manager for PennDOT. “Plowing snow is more of an art than it is a science.”

To fight the icy conditions on state roads in the county, PennDOT deploys 42 plow trucks.

Each of those $200,000 vehicles is complete with a 12-foot wide plow and is capable of carrying 15 tons of salt.

“They're top of the line vehicles,” Skrak said.

It takes an enormous amount of effort and fuel to make those trucks go through snow.

“They get about 5 miles per gallon when they're being worked hard,” Skrak joked. “It's not good.”

Municipalities also have plow trucks maintaining the roads, only on a smaller scale.

The Butler streets department fights winter weather with four Ford F-550 trucks, each sporting a 8.5-foot plow and the capability to carry four tons of salt.

The city also has a smaller F-350 used for tighter streets.

While small when compared to the state trucks, they do an good job keeping the city's streets clear. The city department manages more than 80 miles of streets and alleys with four drivers and one loader.

With limited manpower, maintaining city streets can be challenging at times.

“It gets rough in the city,” said Tom Shuler, the foreman of the streets department. “We've worked a lot of long days.”

Shuler will lead the streets department for the first time this winter, but he isn't nervous.

“I had a good teacher,” he said of Ralph Graham, who retired as foreman in August.

Shuler, who has worked with the city for 23 years, will have some challenges as streets can be difficult to maintain due to their population density and some steep hills.

“The hardest part is probably plowing the residential streets,” Shuler said. “A lot of them are tight and have nowhere to put the snow.”

While the days are long, Shuler said his workers have a lot of dedication to the job.

“We've got a good crew,” he said. “Everyone is dependable.”

Skrak said the same of his PennDOT workers: “I think Butler County has one of the better crews out there. They take it to heart and do a great job.”

PennDOT has two shifts of drivers. They typically drive from 4 a.m. to noon and noon to 8 p.m. shifts, Skrak said.

But when it snows, those shifts are expanded from midnight to noon and noon to midnight.

Shuler said the city drivers also are ready at all hours of the day and night.

To make maintenance simple, drivers are divided into specific routes.

Skrak said each PennDOT truck is responsible for about 45 miles of roads per day. Those drivers are assigned to a route around one of the eight stockpiles of salt across the county.

Shuler said the city drivers are divided up by neighborhood.

“We've got it split up by South Side, West End, Institute Hill and downtown,” Shuler said.

One of the most important aspects to maintaining roads is keeping an eye on the weather.

Skrak said PennDOT monitors five weather websites 24 hours a day, and is in constant talks with the Ohio Department of Transportation.

“They usually get the weather first, and we know we're next on the list,” he said.

Shuler said it's a little less advanced for the city.

“We have no communication out here weather-wise other than what's on our phones,” he said.

Shuler said his department works closely with the city police for weather information.

“They're our eyes and ears,” he said.

Both departments have a priority list on which roads to plow first.

Skrak said PennDOT starts with major highways and four-laned roads.

“We start with the main arteries,” he said. “If the main roads aren't clear, there's no point in moving onto the secondary roads.”

Skrak said winter can be a challenge, especially during sudden temperature drops.

“When the weather's constantly cold, it gets a little easier to predict,” he said. “November and April are the two toughest months in the year.”

Both departments put up with the long hours and the headaches to make sure the streets are safe.

“Our families are driving on these roads too,” Skrak said. “We want to do a good job.”