Kansas City was pummeled by weekend snow. How well did MoDOT prepare, respond?
As snow and ice began to pummel the Kansas City-area over the weekend, Kansas City Manager Brian Platt put out a warning.
City roads were the safest, Platt said. But the state roads maintained by the Missouri Department of Transportation?
“We’ve received reports of dangerous ice conditions on the highways in and around Kansas City and MODOT has not yet treated most of them,” Platt wrote on social media Saturday afternoon.
Throughout the record-breaking blizzard that hit the Kansas City metro, residents have expressed a range of comments — and sharp critiques — about how MoDOT responded to the storm. Many have contrasted the way the state agency responded compared to Kansas City.
“Both the city manager and mayor have been very public about their focus, their attempts to get the city clean as fast as they can,” said Jackson County Legislator Manny Abarca. “I don’t see the same communication happening from Jackson County or the state.”
The criticism of MoDOT’s response comes as the state agency has warned about staffing shortages and is short hundreds of snow plow drivers. When a major storm hits, MoDOT may not have enough staff to fill all of its trucks for multiple shifts, an agency spokesperson has said.
During winter storms, MoDOT is in charge of plowing state highways and bridges while local governments, such as Kansas City, handle local and city roads.
In response to the series of concerns about how the agency responded to the storm, Melissa Black, a spokesperson for MoDOT’s Kansas City district, said that, with every storm, MoDOT has every available snowplow operator working 12-hour shifts until major roads are clear.
Black said that Kansas City-area roads were a priority for the agency, which regularly plows and treats interstates and higher-volume highways “until the road conditions are returned to near normal.” She said MoDOT pre-treated roads before the storm but did not have an exact number of how many.
However, Black also pointed to the agency’s staffing, saying that MoDOT has roughly 3,000 employees around the state to work on 34,000 miles of state roads. During the weekend storm, the agency shifted some staff from the southern parts of the state.
“The biggest issue with the department not being fully staffed is that it can take us longer to get around to all the roads,” Black said. “Otherwise our staff work continuous 12-hour shifts and today marks the fourth day of that 24-hour operation. We will continue to work until the job is done. We appreciate the public’s patience with us.”
‘Proper compensation’
Abarca said that if staffing is an issue for MoDOT, then it’s directly tied to employee pay.
“From my purview, you don’t have staffing issues if you pay people well,” he said. “If they’re having staffing issues, that’s not an excuse to not do the work. The reality is the state needs to figure out how to pay people appropriately.”
As the agency has struggled with staffing, lawmakers have sought to address state employee pay over the years through salary increases. In 2023, for example, lawmakers passed an 8.7% pay raise for all state employees.
Still, the agency lists numerous open positions on its website, including in the Kansas City-area. The starting pay for a maintenance worker is listed at $19.69 per hour.
A fully operational MoDOT is essential to the state, particularly during emergencies, said Sen.-elect Maggie Nurrenbern, a Kansas City Democrat. She pointed to the story of Cameron and Carson Tate, two brothers who were stuck in a standstill on Interstate 35 after leaving work on Saturday.
Carson Tate, who has Type 1 diabetes, was running out of insulin with no sign the two would get home anytime soon. Tate said that when they finally reached a dispatcher, she blamed MoDOT for not treating the roads in time.
Some people took to social media to share stories about the treacherous road conditions near Kansas City, including photos and videos of snow-packed highways. One user described the roads as a “skating rink” and “worst driving conditions I’ve been in.” Others, however, thanked MoDOT for successfully clearing nearby roads.
“These are things that we have to continue to look at,” Nurrenbern said, referring to MoDOT staffing. “Is MoDOT able to provide proper compensation that folks are willing to stay and work for the State of Missouri and do jobs that, quite frankly, are dangerous, treacherous at times, and thankless?”
KC mayor proud of response
The questions about MoDOT’s response come as Kansas City officials have touted the way the city handles local roads during snowstorms. Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas, in a statement, said he was proud of the city’s response and appreciated MoDOT’s communication during the storm.
However, he said the city would review its snowstorm operations and response to begin planning for future storms.
“I hope MoDOT will do the same, including evaluating appropriate staffing and requesting employees from other state agencies to ensure all highways are efficiently cleared and safe for the traveling public,” he said.
This story was originally published January 7, 2025 at 3:58 PM.
