For immediate release: Tuesday, November 25, 2025

As the end of the year approaches, Kansas City stands prepared for any future winter weather events. Staff members have been training since October and are now ready to address snow and ice, utilizing award-winning technology to keep residents and visitors as safe as possible. 

The Snow Team is fully staffed, including 107 newly trained employees. The fleet is equipped to cover 103 plow routes spanning over 6,000 lane miles. With more than 300 trucks available, the team is committed to clearing roads quickly and efficiently. Salt domes are fully stocked with 36,500 tons of salt, 11,000 tons of “Ice Ban,” 51,000 gallons of salt brine and 26,000 gallons of calcium chloride. There’s also an additional 10,000 tons of regular salt, 2,000 tons of Ice Ban, 46,000 gallons of salt brine and 1,000 gallons of calcium chloride in reserve to ensure resources remain plentiful throughout the storm.  

Kansas City snow removal plan:  

• Primary and residential streets are plowed 24 hours per day until the roads are clear.  
• All residential streets are plowed curb to curb instead of a “single pass” as was the past practice.  
• Aggressive pre-treating of all roads before storms – utilizing brine, traditional salt and “ice ban.” 
• Blue salt, called “Ice Ban” (magnesium chloride), works better at lower temperatures than standard calcium chloride.  
• Tandem plowing is used on wide, multi-lane, arterial streets with multiple trucks to efficiently clear streets on the first pass.  
• Trash and recycling services are suspended during big storms to redirect resources to the Snow Team and reduce the number of other vehicles on the road.  
• Plow tracking technology and digital plow route management software ensures accountability, efficiency, and safety for all drivers.  

Snow Treatment Technologies: 

The state-of-the-art Snow Command Center is equipped with custom routing technology and staffed 24 hours per day during winter weather to provide snowplow driver support throughout each shift. This is made possible through our award-winning partnership with Routeware Smart Cities. Every snow removal driver in the city uses a tablet equipped with Routeware’s snow removal software that shows their entire route, including street priority and recent plow activity. 

Snow Command supervises operations and resident requests during snowstorms, with technology to help the Snow Team address slick spots reported through the myKCMO app during post snowfall cleanup.  

For more information on Kansas City’s snow plan, visit KCMO.gov/snow. Learn how to be prepared and use the Snowplow Map to track plows during a snow event. 

Snow Training:

All residential plow drivers must go through training to ensure that staff members know how to safely operate the equipment and utilize the internal plow tracking system. The Public Works Training Center was opened this year to facilitate improved training opportunities. This includes the use of new driving simulators for both new and returning drivers. This training center isn’t just limited to staff members from Public Works, as Snow Team members from the Parks, Neighborhoods, Water and Health Departments are also trained for snow operations at this facility.

Be Prepared:

Winter storms may housebound our residents, knock out the power, or worse, strand individuals in our vehicles. Stay prepared with an emergency kit for the car, work, and home to avoid anxiety, discomfort, and even danger.  

• Keep a thin water flow from faucets along exterior walls at sub 32 degrees 
• Disconnect external hoses
• Identify water shut-off valve in case of emergency

Be informed before the storm so you have a plan, and visit KC Water for more information.