PennDOT to use largely untouched snow removal money to fix roads in Philly region

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- There hasn't been much snow in the Philadelphia region this season, which equals big savings for the state of Pennsylvania.

PennDOT District 6, which covers the five counties that make up the Philadelphia region, budgeted $26 million for winter weather, which includes plowing and salting roads.

But so far, only about $9.1 million has been used. So, that money will be shifted as needed.

"It still goes back to our highways," said Robyn Briggs with PennDOT. "It just may not be with the snow plowing and salt usage."

The money will shift to highway maintenance. In fact, crews have already worked to patch potholes thanks to warmer temperatures. That is one of the projects that will get more funding because of the weather.

"The benefit we're seeing with weather is we are able to get out there sooner and start our pothole repairs," Briggs said.

The salt barns will sit full until next year, which means the state will have to buy less. They've used less than 9,000 tons this season, which isn't much for the district.

But some companies are taking a hit because of the lack of snow.

"This season's been tough with snow removal," said Warren Whitehouse, who runs WC landscaping and Contracting in Roxborough.

Whitehouse said he's only done snow removal a handful of times this season. His salt supply now sits underneath other landscaping materials, because he hasn't used it very much. But he is watching the forecast just in case he has to dig the salt out of his garage.

"We'll see, if not it'll sit there until next year," Whitehouse said.

It's not as easy for stores. Some are running out of space as spring draws near. At True Value in Roxborough, shovels and salt sit on the shelves, where they have all season. The store hasn't sold much, so the salt has been moved under a tent in the back parking lot to make room for the spring supplies.

"A little bit of an inconvenience," said Alex Jaconski, who runs True Value. "If it doesn't sell, we'll have it around and we'll move it around accordingly. We have some space."