Officials across the country are working to address a shortage of snowplow drivers as winter rages on and the Colorado Department of Transportation is among the many agencies impacted.

CDOT full team consists of 1,600 road maintenance specialists and frontline supervisors across the state and currently has around 200 openings. This is nearly double the amount of vacancies traditionally reported, said Matthew Inezo, a spokesman for the department, in an email statement to The Denver Gazette. 

He said the higher than normal job openings are due to the labor shortage thats impacted industries across the country.

“While we have seen a higher rate of vaccines among our plow operators, we have made operational adjustments to maintain the level of service we deliver,” Inezo said. 

CDOT has implemented changes throughout their system that has moved various snowplow teams across the state. For instance, snowplow teams from the metro were sent to the state’s high country over the holidays when a large storm system moved through.

Despite making these changes for the first time, Inezo said operations have exceeded the department’s expectations.

“We are finding it has worked so well that we will likely continue this to some degree even when our staffing levels return to normal,” Inezo said.

In an attempt to encourage people to fill the open positions, CDOT is offering a $2000 bonus for drivers who work every snow shift this season. They are also providing housing stipends to drivers. Those who live in Denver receive $500 each month and $800 for people who live in the state’s mountain towns.

Additionally, the department has increased its annual wages for maintenance workers and is offering 7.5% bonuses for those who complete their first year of training, Inezo said. 

Denver’s Department of Transportation and Infrastructure is also offering similar incentives despite having a sufficient number of drivers so far this season, said Nancy Kuhn, a spokeswoman for the department.

Kuhn said they’re actively recruiting drivers who can operate big vehicles in a few of their divisions and are offering $2,500 signing bonuses.

Although CDOT is currently dealing with a shortage of plow drivers, Inezo said the department is doing extremely well considering the circumstances.

“We are seeing considerable success with the changes we have made,” he said. “The operational changes mean we are maintaining our normal levels of service, and our compensation and recruitment has seen new hires exceed separations by 60% over the last three months. We will get the job done through this winter.”