Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Even though snowy weather may seem far away, the Minnesota Department of Transportation has started to focus on preparation for the coming winter, according to a press release.

Semi tractor-trailers have been delivering road salt over the last few weeks to MnDOT’s 23 truck stations across the 11 counties in southeastern Minnesota’s District 6. At Rochester’s truck station, 2,400 tons have been delivered. Trucks brought the salt from barges in Winona to the MnDOT facilities in southeastern Minnesota.

The delivery of road salt to MnDOT is part of the long-term planning that goes into being prepared for the snow and ice season.

Summer is a good time to deliver salt because it is dry and can be moved efficiently to storage areas at each MnDOT truck station. The salt is from mines in Michigan, Missouri or Kansas.

On average, MnDOT District 6 uses 36,974 tons of road salt in a winter.

Once the salt is delivered, a sample of each truckload is tested by MnDOT’s District 6 materials lab for moisture, size and impurities to ensure its quality. The lab will test 1,500 to 2,000 salt samples this season.