By: News Director Larissa Donovan
ST. PAUL– The Minnesota Department of Transportation spent nearly $133 million to clear the roadways this past winter.
According to a winter maintenance report released today, crews faced some of the most severe weather in the state in a decade.
In MnDOT’s District 2, which is northwestern Minnesota the Bemidji area, crews laid down an average of 126,000 tons of salt and an average of 43,000 tons of sand.
Historically, snow and ice expenditures for District 2 are an average of $8.879 million, but last year District 2 costed MnDOT over $10.2 million.
Factors affecting winter maintenance costs include the timing of storms, change in labor costs, salt and chemical prices as well as winter severity, inflation, and fuel prices.
