GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — At Grand Rapids Public Works, snow plow drivers are working 12-hour shifts to make sure the roads are safe for drivers during this weekend's winter storm.
13 ON YOUR SIDE was able to ride inside a truck driven by Lanita Godwin, who has been plowing the roads in Grand Rapids for 25 years.
"We have the city broken into 20 routes, which we call first intentions," said Godwin as she drove her route, covering Division to Grandville and Wealthy to 28th Street. She's extra careful to make sure the overpasses are clear and salted for drivers and semitrucks coming off the freeway.
Each driver has about ten lane miles they are responsible for clearing. She demonstrated how she begins plowing from the middle of the road, then works closer to the curb with each lap.
She said if the snow is coming down hard enough, it can be hard to tell she had even cleared a lane when doing her next lap.
"Sometimes you can make one pass and come back the other side and you can't even tell that you did the one side. So sometimes when it's like that it is easier to double up with the person that has the route next to you, and then that way you can get it faster to the curb," she said.
Godwin showed off the inside of her truck, with controls for things like salt and liquids all on one controller, which she particularly enjoys.
She says she has been driving the same truck for 17 years, and while it does not have some of the features that newer vehicles have, she says this is how she likes it.
"I've had her for 17 years, and so I know what she can do and what she can't do. I know how much power she has and so... I just love her."
Her day begins at 6:30 a.m. and goes until 6:30 p.m. During her day, some of the biggest obstacles she faces are other drivers.
"When you pull out in front of us, we have all this weight and then you know, we're concentrating on watching traffic, watching the light, watching for pedestrians," Godwin said.
She says the biggest misconception people have is that plows can "stop on a dime."
"We'll fly just like you're flying, and so we want people to be mindful and be courteous, you know, give us give us room."
Godwin says she and her fellow drivers sometimes see each other more than their own families, and in a way they have also become like a family.
"After the season we'll try to do something, go bowling, and we'll try to have a cookout or something, but sometimes you are here more than you are with your family. So, we all try to be like a family and help one another," she said.
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