Episode 155: WINTER SERVICE TC - 2026 National Briefing

This National Briefing segment is presented by Peter Nutz, City of Vienna Austria and features the World Road Association’s Winter Service Technical Committee. 

Check out their work products and get more information about PIARC’s Winter Service Technical Committee at their website https://www.piarc.org/en/PIARC-knowledge-base-Roads-and-Road-Transportation/Road-Safety-Sustainability/Winter-Service  

You can also reach out to Peter Nutz at  peter.nutz@wien.gv.at  

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!

Transcript

Rick 0:11

Welcome back to Talking Winter Ops. It's that time of year again when we sit down with other organizations working in winter maintenance to catch up on what they've been doing this past year. I'm Rick Nelson, and I'll be your host for the 2026 National Winter Maintenance and Road Weather Briefing Series. These briefings give us an opportunity to catch up with our partners in winter maintenance and road weather, learn about what they've been working on over the past year, and hear about their plans for the future. More importantly, they give you a chance to see how these ideas, tools, and initiatives might fit into your own operation. So grab your favorite beverage, settle in, and let's catch up with our partners across the country to hear about what's new and what's coming up next.

SPEAKER_02 1:00

Hi, I'm Jud Falgren, State Maintenance Engineer for the Minnesota Department of Transportation. And for the last 14 years, I've been actively involved in the snow and ice community at the state DOT. And over the years, I've seen no shortage of new technologies, new products, and ideas come along. The challenge often isn't finding information, it's figuring out what really works and what makes sense for your organization. As someone who's been involved with the program for these many years, I've come to appreciate the role the Ashto Winter Weather Management Technical Service Program plays in helping agencies answer those questions. One of the things that I've always valued most is that this just isn't theory, it's practitioners helping practitioners. It's a chance to learn from the experience of others. Avoid reinventing the wheel and tap into a network of people who understand the same challenges that we face every winter. I've seen firsthand how these ideas and relationships built through this program have helped agencies improve safety, efficiency, and service to our traveling public. And with a modest annual contribution, your agency can take advantage of the same resources, webinars, workshops, and peer networks that have made this program so valuable to me over the years. If you're not already involved, I really encourage you to take a look at the ASHO Winter Weather Management Technical Service Program. Visit transportation.org forward slash winter-weather-management. You may find the answers to a challenge you're dealing with today. Or the next idea that really helps you move your winter operations forward.

Rick 2:53

This segment focuses on PIARC's Winter Service Technical Committee. And with us is uh Peter Knutz with the city of Vienna, Austria, and also chair of the technical committee. Welcome, Peter.

SPEAKER_00 3:07

Yeah, hello, welcome, Rick. Nice to see you again.

Rick 3:09

Yeah, it's been a whole year. It's it's time to catch up on what you all been doing.

SPEAKER_00 3:15

Yeah, yeah. Well, we had this huge congress that was great. So um uh as you know, Pyer, we have like uh a big winter congress every four years, and it happened this year in March in Chambéry in France, and it was beautiful scenery, perfect for winter. You had you know the in the French Alps and the mountains, and of course, we had a lot of attendees, so we were expecting like 800 or 1000, but we doubled that number. We had around 2,000 attendees, and it was really a success. And part of it because was that PIAC widened the subject, so it's winter service, but they also include resilience and decarbonization to this topic to attract more countries. You know, as a as a worldwide organization, it's hard to get some count all countries interested in winter service because I guess half of the world is doing winter service, the other half don't really need to do much winter service. So but it was was really great. And we had like 24 sessions for winter service dedicated to winter service, and around 10 for decarbonisation and 10 for uh resilience, so it was around 45 sessions um and with 300 uh accepted papers that were presented. It's really nice, um big Congress.

Rick 4:47

Yeah, and as part of the Congress, there's also uh an equipment show. Was there an equipment show at this Congress as well?

SPEAKER_00 4:55

Yeah, of course. Yeah, you could see you got two shows. You got uh one indoors where you got you know the more the like uh new software or new smaller parts, and then you got an outdoor show with uh some trucks and some spreaders you could see. And we also had the snowplow championship, the world snowplow championship uh outside, which was uh really fun to watch. You know, all the drivers we had, I think like 12 countries participating, and it was a really nice event. And Slovenia won the Congress, uh the contest. Yeah, which was bad for us because we won last time, so but we we got fourth this time, so but it was it was a really great competition, and and you know, you uh the drivers they um they had some party together, which was really nice to see, and I think that was um um the most important thing to to uh also appreciate the work of the drivers, um bringing them up, you know, uh with all the decision makers on this Congress, um, and also giving them the uh their awards in front of all the audience there from the Congress. That was really um great, uh yeah, and really really good drivers um from all over the world competed against each other. That was nice. Wow, yeah, um so um for with RTC um we had to chair like we had to chair all these 24 um sessions, which was a lot of work to do, but we got it done. It was it was nice to have um that many chairs also within the PIA committee, and um really happy and proud to have such an active committee with a lot of members um that really help uh making such things uh a success. Um and we also had some like uh foresight sessions and special projects, which for such sessions they think a bit more like in the future and a bit uh uh on a more strategic level, and that was nice to hear on these parts. And we also had um worked together with Cirvec, um they wrote uh weather um and yet I think two or three sessions were reserved for CirVag um um as part of the the foursatch session, so this was really um great integration with another um organization. I'm not sure if you have Circle also on the list, but uh you might do. And what was was really great about the the Congress, so you could see a lot of things developing, you know, like this new technology in winter service um with with um automated spreader control and root designing and also new spreaders. And these it's things that you you see uh every four years, but it's not the same because you can you can see the development of these technology uh techniques and with this AI coming up in the last years, there's a there's been huge progress in this part for like automatization. And it was important for us because we as a TC we have focused on one part of our work was focusing on the workforce in winter service. Um we saw when we started this cycle that it was a worldwide problem, you know, getting um enough people to work in winter service. Um it's it's a hard job, it's it's stupid times to work on because you know snow does not know any working time, yeah. So it's like snowing, I don't know, almost every time on the weekend or on the during the night or whatever, and you have to be you have to get drivers out there. So um we try to find um we try to look what the others do because you know you don't know to invent the wheel twice or three times or whatever. So we maybe you can see somewhat someone else is doing that might work um in your organization as well. And we were trying to compile this in one thing, and and we could see another uh step is um that with this um all this technology and sensor uh getting more and more integrated in the spreaders, that it's much easier for the drivers to work with in winter service. Um, because you know, you have to drive, you got the snow plow, it's snowing, it's dark probably, you need to focus on driving, and then you but you should also um use the plow, the spreader with the correct uh spreading uh amount and whatever. So this is really hard. Of course, experienced drivers can do this, but at least in Europe you got much less snow events. So even if we've got drivers that were drive for us like for two, three years, and maybe if it was snowing, they were not on their shift, um, they had their free time. Um, and this is a huge help for them if you can if you can automate at least the spreading part of it. And we saw, I've seen the the progress in this in this um field. It's it's really uh great to see that so much work is done there.

Rick 10:18

Yeah, and I I think I think this idea of artificial intelligence is um really going to create an impact in that area because it can capture you know that institutional knowledge and and apply it for the driver.

SPEAKER_00 10:35

Yeah, it's really um also not for the driver, also for the decision makers. Um, it supports their decisions. Um but you can see that you can see if if this is progressing, progressing, you can see then the other end that well, if the machine or the AI is taking the decision, well, who is responsible for it then? So we had this discussion um as well, and I think everyone who is looking into this will end up at some point at this discussion, okay. But who's responsible? And it has to be a human right now, so um it's a huge help. Um, but you there are also some things you need to think about it uh a bit more. So it's right two sides of one coin, yeah.

Rick 11:12

Yeah, absolutely.

SPEAKER_00 11:15

Yeah, and what you could also see is the um tier uh advancing input data you get from like you know, most cars have so many sensors uh built in them and they're also connected to to the car companies, and they're sending this data back, and there is now some some good um use of this data. You can see like uh where it's slippery, where it's raining, and and the temperatures and so on. And this I've it's also a thing that like you can follow and you can see that the really fast development in this stuff. That was really great to see.

unknown 11:50

Yeah.

Rick 11:52

So you're getting close to the end of your four-year cycle. When when when will when will the cycle end?

SPEAKER_00 12:02

So the cycle will end in in October 27 with the huge uh World Road Congress. It will be um closer to you. This time it will be in Vancouver, Canada. Oh, alright. Yeah. So and the call for papers is open already. Uh it would be great. So the uh call for papers is open, it started with the call for abstracts, and it's open until the 31st of August this year. If you're thinking about um submitting an abstract, you've got uh two more months to submit it, and and it would be great to um to have a lot of abstracts to to go through and to to um select the best ones. And of course, it's it's this is the huge um road congress, so it's not focused on winter, but it's really focused on everything related to to roads.

Rick 12:57

Now you have been working on your technical committee, has been working on a few projects throughout this last four years. Could could you refresh us on what those projects are?

SPEAKER_00 13:10

So the biggest project we had was the winter congress, which we we are happy we finished and it was a success. Um, but uh with this winter congress, we also finished the snow and ice data book. So this is a huge document and it it compiles information from a bit more than 20 countries about the winter service. So, what's the the geographical location, the weather, um, the regulations you have, the techniques you use, maybe some special projects you use, and it's made up in in the same um contents for every country, so you can compare and you can uh look for you know the northern countries or the countries with harder winter if you want to prepare a special scenario for some worst case scenario, and so and that's been published in the English version, has been published already. Okay, um, so that's the two we've already finished, and then we've got one more about winter service in urban areas because in urban areas winter service is quite different from from Harveys. Um it's it's completely different. You get much smaller wiggles, much smaller, narrow roads, or bicycle lanes. We had a huge focus on bicycle lanes because that's becoming more and more popular to do winter service on bicycle lanes. We had uh there will be um a first, no, it's it should be finished already. Um, a briefing note. Uh usually briefing note is short, but this one is around 15 pages with the results of our first questionnaire, where we we um compile the information of the cities we we asked, and I think we've got around 70 cities that uh give us answers, and it's it's good to see what they're working on. We also asked the cities if they are doing some special projects, and we are now for the second, so for the next one and a half year, we are trying to find some uh best practices and case studies um that we select, and then we we prepare for um a technical report by October 27th for the uh World Road Congress to be published. There will also be a report on the skills and resources for winter service. It's the topic I already mentioned. So, how do you get people to work in winter service? That should be finished really soon, but we're still publishing it, so um give us a few more months, but this will be published soon as uh case studies and a briefing note.

Rick 15:48

I think that's a problem that is universal trying to find people to work in winter service. I'm looking forward to seeing that report and seeing if you've got any really good ideas that uh that we can leverage.

SPEAKER_00 16:02

Yeah, and it it's funny because you you we we split up the the feedback we gave, and you can see that you know, like um we asked the people um how do you motivate your your uh employees? And at one point was like giving them money, you know, give them extra free time, and you could see that giving more money is not everywhere successful. That was really different um around the world, and that was really interesting to see, yeah.

Rick 16:30

Yeah, there's different different motivators for different people, and yeah, you know, when when you and I got started in the business, the the motivations I think were different than the things that motivate you know workers today.

SPEAKER_00 16:44

Yeah, that's true. And also, of course, we are we then ask, okay, um, how what what type of motivation worked for you? So it's also like um, you know, can you can go through the case studies and say, Oh, that's a good idea. I might try this in my organization. Maybe this works. Yeah, so this will be published soon. Um, we have another technical report which will be uh bigger. It's about the integration of new technologies in metaservice, so it's a really wide spectrum. It's basically where we put everything that's new, where um people try new things, new new methods, uh all maybe also AI, and make a lot of case studies and put them together in this technical report that will be finished for the Congress. So also October 27. Yeah, yeah. So that's the things. We are um it's only two meetings left before the last cycle ends. So it's it's or really the first cycle is the last meeting, is already the Congress. So um yeah, it's uh quite a lot to do.

Rick 17:48

Well, and this is this is the gets to be the busy time where you're trying to finish up the reports and and uh translate them into different languages. The the reports are still offered in English and what are the other languages?

SPEAKER_00 18:01

Yeah, languages are uh French and Spanish. So Pyac has three official languages English, Spanish, and French, and it will be published in all three languages. Um but since all the whole work group speaks English, we usually we uh publish the English version first. I see. Because it's the first one that's finished, and then you've got translate and check for the translation and so on. But yeah, that's the three languages. So it's still some work to do, but we have some um also some some some good news, or maybe some bad news, you never know, because you know the channel secretary of PyAC they changed. Oh you know, your Pyac has this rule where you can do a job only for two cycles, so eight years. And so Patrick Malachak, the uh secretary general for the last two cycles, two and a half cycles um already. He uh his mandate ended this March. And Mugel Casa Flores, um, he will he will be the new Secretary General, and we've got Nadia Lapoya from Canada, she will be new the new Deputy Secretary General, and the new technical director, Mallory Trouvet. Um, so it's got new fresh energy in Pike General Secretariat. It's good for us at DC because we we always get a lot of support from them. And we also have the freedom to to, you know, if we see okay, this product, so like we have that this should be a questionnaire, but it might be better as a report, or we changed the the type of product we we do. Got some flexibility there, and it's really good um for us as a working group.

Rick 19:40

Okay. So is the planning for the next cycle starting yet, or will that come a bit later?

SPEAKER_00 19:47

No, it's it's kind of started, so we are we are already thinking about the next um the next cycle. What we include of winter service, of course, will be uh a topic again. Um so like uh Pike they have um around 27 TCs, and not all of them continue in the next cycle, but winter service is one that continues usually every cycle, so so winter service will continue as well. We're not sure about the topics we look on, but very in discussion it will be so of course new technologies will be and and AI will be some maybe some focus, but there is that's not sure if this should be as one um special TC only doing AI stuff, or should it be spread out to the different TCs? Um, so there are still some discussions ongoing, but it's it's good to be included in discussions already. And yes, we can start in the next cycle. Uh, we can already start with working on the issues we have.

Rick 20:46

Yeah, okay. You know, I think it's important for the listeners here in the US to understand the time frame that Pyarc operates under. It's uh a four-year cycle. Committee stands up at the beginning of the four years, fresh set of projects. Of course, there's the winter congress that has become that that's a tradition. And when the cycle's over, the reports are written, the products are produced, and then the committee sort of disbands and then reformulates again for the next four-year period to work on the next pieces, which I think is a really uh unique approach. Because you see a beginning and this middle and the end, you reevaluate the the things that you should be looking on that are timely, and then you go and you spend the next period looking at that. I think that's a a really unique model that that Pyarc follows.

SPEAKER_00 21:44

Yeah, and and it's it's great as well because you you've got a lot of fresh faces, new faces every cycle. So it's good to have some experience with because it takes some time to to learn how PyAC works. Um so it's it's a good mixture of you know new ones that bring in uh fresh stuff and and older ones are more experienced ones that that already know how Pyac works, and that's a great mixture, yeah.

Rick 22:09

So Peter, this this will finish your second cycle, is that right? Or is this just your first cycle? That's right, yeah. So they'll be looking for new a new chair.

SPEAKER_00 22:20

Yes, yes, it's my second cycle, so I'm I'm I'm planning on staying on GTC, but not as a chair, and hopefully find uh um a good successor.

Rick 22:32

All right. Well, it's been it's been great working with you. I I and I enjoyed our time when we were together on the TC um years past, and it's great to catch up with what's going on internationally. And and you know, you think you've got unique a unique set of problems, but when people come together from across the world and start comparing notes, it's like yeah, it's yeah, it's it's the same same problem everywhere. And the unique thing is the different approaches give you a really broad opportunity to see what might work best for your organization.

SPEAKER_00 23:13

Yeah, yeah, that's that's really uh one of the the great things Pyek to leave us here.

Rick 23:19

All right. Any other news to report from the Winter Service Technical Committee?

SPEAKER_00 23:26

Not yet. So we are we're about to to publish um all the reports. The reports are free still, so you have to to register at Pyek.org. But uh and after you registry, you can download all the um content for free. So we'll have them published hopefully soon. But also the old reports, pretty good, and you get a lot of things to to learn from it and all of things, ideas that worked or maybe not worked. Yeah.

Rick 23:54

Yeah, that's a good point, Peter. We'll put the URL to the website in our show notes so people have easy access to the uh Winter Service Technical Committee and all those past reports. Well, Peter, it's been great catching up. Thanks so much for joining us for the national briefing this year.

SPEAKER_00 24:11

Thanks for having me, Rick.

Rick 24:13

Thanks for listening in on this year's national briefing. You can catch them all and other talking winterops episodes on our website, talkin'winterops.com, at the Ashto Winter Weather Management website at transportation.org forward slash winter-weather-management, or wherever you get your podcast content. Video versions of this briefing are available on our Talk and Winterops YouTube channel. Now, if something in this briefing sparked your interest, you can email me or our guests to keep the conversation going. Until next time, thanks for tuning in and stay safe out.