Zero temperatures a roadblock for DPW, school bus fleets

John Howell
Posted 1/13/15

It was a comparatively balmy 22 degrees at 5:30 a.m. Friday. The city’s 14 automated sanitation and recycling trucks were all running and waiting for their drivers.

David Picozzi, acting …

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Zero temperatures a roadblock for DPW, school bus fleets

Posted

It was a comparatively balmy 22 degrees at 5:30 a.m. Friday. The city’s 14 automated sanitation and recycling trucks were all running and waiting for their drivers.

David Picozzi, acting director of the Department of Public Works, and Brian Steinkamp, automotive chief for the department, weren’t taking any chances given what happened Thursday when the thermometer dropped to .09 degrees.

Less than a half-mile away on Strawberry Field Road, many of the 92 school buses operated by First Student were already running. Manager Sue Barbour was anxious to ensure everything would run smoothly. It did.

Picozzi explained that typically by this time of year, plow and sanding crews have made multiple runs. But conditions have been exceptionally mild up until recently, and instead of pushing mounds of snow to the side of the road, crews have still been picking up yard waste – although, technically, collections are over for the season. Picozzi said whatever few bags of leaves are still out there will be picked up with Christmas trees. Tree collections will run for another week or 10 days.

And then came the frigid air.

Even though the diesel trucks have engine block heaters, many of the sanitation and recycling trucks were tough to start. Usually, drivers grab their truck and are off, but on Thursday they had to wait for department mechanics to get them running.

Over at First Student, dispatcher Lynnette Souza was getting calls from drivers who couldn’t get their cars started and were having difficulty getting to work. As First Student doesn’t have a garage on Strawberry Field Road, crews came over with jump packs from the facility on Jefferson Boulevard to get buses running.

Getting trucks and buses started was just a part of the challenge. At such low temperatures, even the winter blend of diesel fuel turns to an orangey jelly, Steinkamp said. This is especially problematic in the newer trucks that have refined filter systems designed to meet stricter emissions codes. Ideally, if all the trucks could be kept inside, it wouldn’t be an issue; however, there isn’t enough garage space.

The solution is a diesel additive, Diesel 9-1-1, that costs about $10 a quart and is added to the fuel tank. First Student uses the same additive, as apparently many people with diesel vehicles do.

“You couldn’t buy it if you wanted to,” Steinkamp said. He said retail outlets were sold out of the additive. Fortunately, both the city and First Student had stocked up on it.

The problems weren’t over after leaving the yard. The “one-armed bandit” that reaches out and grabs recycling or sanitation bins operates on hydraulics and air. Condensation in those lines can freeze into tiny ice pellets that lock up the system.

“It’s a 66,000-pound truck, and all it takes is a blip of water and they’re out of service,” said Steinkamp.

It happened to some trucks when the arm was fully extended in the dumping position. That brought collections to a halt and made it impossible for the driver to drive the truck for fear of hitting overhead wires and limbs. In that case, Steinkamp explained, a crew was dispatched to the vehicle and the lines were blown clear. Alcohol is also used to clear the lines.

Not only did the cold affect the mechanical arm but also truck brakes.

“We can handle things down to about 15 degrees, but when it gets to zero it starts to break up,” Steinkamp said.

In some cases, the department has even used bullet heaters under trucks to thaw out lines and get them running.

There was a silver lining to the deep freeze, in that snow did not accompany the cold. If it had, the city would also have been faced with starting plows and sanders.

“We were really lucky we didn’t have to get the plow trucks going,” Picozzi said.

First Student had several incidents where buses already on their routes came to a halt. Barbour said crews were sent out to get them restarted, and buses in the vicinity were redirected to complete the routes.

“It was a crazy morning,” Souza said, “but everybody helped each other.”

Comments

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  • wwkvoter

    It's no fun to work outdoors in the winter. But maybe there is a benefit to Rob Cote "turning up the heat" on DPW with his video camera? lol

    Wednesday, January 14, 2015 Report this

  • falina

    Why would they need to be prepared for winter temperatures? It's not like this is New England.....

    Thursday, January 15, 2015 Report this