New Jersey Prepares Early For Emergency Winter Weather

The New Jersey Department of Transportation announced in late August it has decided to get special GPS devices for its five hundred snowplows and salt spreaders so they can be tracked in real time from a command center. The upgrades are expected to cost about $17 million.

The move is a counter-offensive to concerns of winter-weather preparedness, as the Garden State was subject to crippling snowstorms during the 2010/2011 season.

"This improved technology will ensure more accountability and help us respond to areas in need on our highway system much faster and it will enable a more fluid plan of attack during winter storms," says Tim Greeley, New Jersey Department of Transportation Spokesman.

NJDOT will also give GPS-enabled cell phones to the privately owned trucks that are used to help plow the roads.

"This is something that we've seen other departments successfully using systems like this," says Greeley.

The state also plans to upgrade the thirty stations that track rainfall and snowfall on roads throughout the state.

Governor Chris Christie also ended the $10 million cap on snow removal when he signed this year's budget so the state can spend more money if another blizzard this winter warrants it.