High Tech Snow Plows
Listen in RealAudio
Email your weather question

Blowing snow, fog, rain, they can all make for hazardous driving. But for vehicles that have to go out in these conditions, like snowplows, they can't take the time off when the visibility drops to zero. That's why the state of Minnesota is experimenting with some new technology to help snowplow drivers peer behind the weather curtain. Hi, I'm Dave Thurlow and this is The Weather Notebook.

Minnesota Guidestar is the state's Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) program.

Called the Intelligent Vehicle Initiative, the Department of Transportation in Minnesota has equipped one of it's snowplows with a system of sensors which, they believe, will allow drivers to get a good view of the road even during heavy snowstorms.

The plow will be tested on an electro-magnetically marked 50-mile stretch of road around the Twin Cities, a road which is prone to drifting and blowing snow. Magnetic tape will take the place of regular lane striping, and a sensor on the plow will indicate to the driver where he or she is in the lane.

The plow will also have Collision Warning System, which is a 360-degree radar to inform the driver of approaching obstacles. And if other vehicles get too close to the plow, the radar will activate strobe lights on the rear of the vehicle.

And for the really cool part, there will be a video game like display on the driver's windshield to show lane boundaries and things like guardrails and signposts, allowing the driver to see a 'virtual' version of the roadway blocked by snow.

Other snow-prone states are keeping a watchful eye on this test, which will end in 2002. If the test is a success, those other states will be sure to order their own 'smart' plows. For more about smart plows, visit weathernotebook.org. Our show is a production of the Mount Washington Observatory. Thanks go to Subaru, the beauty of all wheel drive.