Salt and salted sand are critical components to ensuring the safety of Westbrook’s roads during the long winter months.

The Westbrook Public Services Department stockpiles 2,500 tons of salt and 2,500 yards of salted sand for usage during a typical winter season. A carefully calibrated and prioritized application of salt to Westbrook’s roadways helps to ensure that snow and ice do not bond to pavement surfaces. Most of the trucks in the Westbrook Public Services Department’s fleet utilize computer driven salt application technologies which permit operators to apply salt at rates of between 200 to 500 pounds per mile. Westbrook currently maintains approximately 170 miles of road with a typical storm requiring a total city-wide application of between 80 and 100 tons of salt.

The current market price of road salt is $44 per ton and, as such, every effort is made to economically apply it. Main thoroughfares and long runs are given priority with a sand/salt mixture used to treat residential streets and side roads.

As always, Westbrook residents are encouraged to call the Public Services Department at 854-0660 with questions or concerns about winter road conditions in their neighborhoods.