Talkin Winter Ops
Listen in on conversations with experts in the field of road weather and winter road maintenance as they explain how their work helps make roads safer and passable during winter storm events.
Talkin Winter Ops
Episode 148: INTRODUCTION to the 2026 National Briefing
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Welcome to the 2026 National Winter Maintenance and Road Weather Briefing series! Each year, this special event brings together organizations from across the winter maintenance, road weather, and highway operations community to share their latest initiatives, innovations, and accomplishments.
This year, eight organizations are participating, offering insights into their work and the practical benefits these advancements can bring to transportation agencies, industry professionals, and anyone involved in keeping our roads safe during winter.
Watch the video and presentation along with all the other briefings on our YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/@Talkinwinterops or listen on the Talkin Winter Ops podcast at https://transportation.org/winter-weather-management/sicop-talks-winter-ops/ or wherever you get your podcast content.
Sign up for email notifications on future episodes and other communications associated with winter maintenance and winter weather management by clicking on subscribe on the Talkin' Winter Ops website at TalkinWinterOps.com
Thanks for listening in and stay safe out there!
Welcome back to Talkin' Winter Ops and to the seventh national briefing on winter maintenance and road weather. Around this time every year, as we get ready for the ASHTO Committee on Maintenance Annual Meeting, we put Talkin' Winter Ops on pause for a special reason. We dedicate a series of episodes to giving our partners across the winter maintenance, road weather, and maintenance operations community an opportunity to catch us up on what they've been working on over the past year. It's one of my favorite series because it gives all of us a chance to step away from our day-to-day responsibilities and see what's happening across the country. We may work in different agencies and organizations, but we're all tackling many of the same challenges at the same time. We're finding new ways to improve how we do our jobs through research, technology, innovation, and collaboration. The more we share those experiences, the stronger our community becomes. And that's really what this annual briefing is all about. It's an opportunity for our partners to showcase new research, innovative projects, operational improvements, and resources that can help all of us better prepare for and respond to winter weather. It's a chance to learn from one another, spark new ideas, and stay connected as winter maintenance continues to evolve. Before we get started, I'd like to recognize and thank the organizations that made this briefing possible. First, a sincere thank you to all of this year's participating organizations for taking the time to prepare and share these updates. This year's organizations providing an update are APWA, Aurora, Clear Roads, the Maintenance Decision Support System Team, No Boundaries, PIARC's Winter Service Technical Committee, and the Transportation Research Board's Standing Committee on Winter Maintenance and Response to Weather Events. I'd also like to thank the Ashto Winter Weather Management Technical Service Program and the Maintenance Operations Technical Working Group of the Ashto Committee on Maintenance for their briefings, supporting this series, and their continued leadership in advancing winter maintenance and road weather practices. Their support helps make opportunities like this possible year after year. This year's briefing is presented as a series of prerecorded segments with each organization providing an update on its latest activities, research, resources, and initiatives. Some presentations may speak directly to the work you do every day, while others may introduce a new idea, tool, or partnership that could benefit your agency in the future. So I encourage you to take the time to watch or listen to every single segment. You never know which presentation will include an idea you can bring back to your own operation, a resource you didn't know existed, or a connection that leads to your next collaboration. Every organization presented here has something valuable to share, and together these updates paint a great picture of work happening across the winter maintenance community. Whether you're joining us from a state DOT, a local agency, industry, academia, or one of our many partner organizations, thank you for spending some of your valuable time with us. You can catch the national briefing wherever you get your podcast content on the Ashto Winter Weather Management Program website at transportation.org slash winter dash weather dash management or on the Talkin Winter Ops YouTube channel. Thanks again for joining us and thank you for everything you do to keep the traveling public safe during the winter season. Until next time, thanks for listening in and stay safe out there.
