Will Spend $31 Million On Heavy-Duty Equipment

It took a severe snowstorm last year to convince Denver International Airport to upgrade its snow-removal capabilities. Airport officials announced this week they plan to spend approximately $31 million over the next 10 years, to purchase the latest in heavy-duty snow equipment.

The upgrade plan, which must be approved by the Denver city council, calls for the airport's current snowplows to be replaced with new snow removal machines that, when lined up side-by-side, can clear a runway in about 15 minutes.

By comparison, the current system requires about 90 minutes to clear a runway, DEN spokesman Chuck Cannon told USA Today. The new machines have already been put into service at New York's Albany International, and other airports typically hit with strong winter storms.

As ANN reported, a December 20, 2006 snowstorm stranded some 5,000 passengers at the airport, and clogged operations for several days.

Denver also plans to lease additional snow-melters, at a cost of about $5 million, to prevent snow from clogging ramp areas. Each unit can melt about 600 tons of snow an hour... the equivalent of 40 to 60 dump trucks, according to officials.

FMI: www.flydenver.com