There’s No Business Like Snow Business: Frosty the Snowplow, Plower McPower Set to Keep Reading’s Streets Clear of Snow and Ice this Winter
Reading Public School students named the Town’s snowplow fleet for the 24-25 season
It’s snow laughing matter: the students of Reading’s five elementary schools and two middle schools have spoken, and the result is a group of seven named snowplows that are gearing up to keep Reading’s streets clear of the white stuff this winter season.
“The names went above and beyond what we expected,” said Christopher Cole, Director of Public Works. “It will certainly be a fun addition for our drivers to have named plows this season; hopefully the kids will like seeing the plows at work with their new name tags!”
Here’s the inside scoop on the snowplow names for 24-25:
- Barrows: Frosty the Snowplow
- Birch Meadow: Snowpy
- Coolidge: Blizzard Blaster
- Joshua Eaton: Baby Snow-Da
- Killam: Plower McPower
- Parker: Fast & Flurrious
- Wood End: Scoop Dawg
Lead by the Town’s Department of Public Works, this year marks the first time the snowplow fleet has been named. The elementary schools (Barrows, Birch Meadow, Joshua Eaton, Killam and Wood End) and the middle schools (Coolidge and Parker) submitted a veritable avalanche of names for consideration, with some schools inviting individual nominations and others encouraging class nominations. Several of the schools then allowed a whole-school vote to determine three top contenders. From those options, Town staff selected a winner from each school.
“This was a fun initiative, and a great chance for our students to showcase their creativity,” commented Dr. Tom Milaschewski, Superintendent of Schools. “Thank you to the DPW, and to all our classroom teachers and school administrators for guiding the nominations through to these final names.”
Though only one name was chosen per school, some honorable mentions include: Thaw Patrol (Joshua Eaton), The Polar Express (Coolidge), and Polar Patroller (Barrows).
The Department of Public Works is always on the case to make sure Reading’s streets don’t get snow-verwhlemed; it plows about 200 lane miles of roads, and over 45 miles of sidewalks, including 15 school / Town building parking lots, and 4 cemeteries. During an average winter storm, the Town deploys approximately 40 pieces of Town equipment and about 30 pieces of contracted equipment during snow clearing operations.
The Town plans to run the plow equipment naming contest annually. “It’s a fantastic way to foster engagement with the schools, and to help recognize the hard work and dedication shown each and every day by our Public Works employees,” said Cole.
