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The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) in the US has introduced a new innovation to make wing plows of trucks better visible to motorists, enhancing safety.

Installed on the right side of a plow truck, a wing plow can increase the plow’s reach, allowing it to cut about 14ft of snow in one pass rather than clearing only 9ft to 10ft of snow.

The drivers can use the extended wing plow to clear a travel lane and a section of the shoulder in one pass.

This will not only help them reduce the number of passes required to clear an entire road covered with snow, but also succeed in bringing down the equipment, fuel and labour costs.

Last year, both MDOT and Marquette County Road Commission’s plowing fleets were allowed to increase the use of their wing plows on state routes.

"We’ve innovated a feature that really works."

To avoid accidents, the plow trucks use additional flashlights installed over the wing plows to alert drivers.

A latest wing plow lighting system has been developed by MDOT’s state workers Tom Deschaine and Jason Rankinen at its L’Anse Maintenance facility in the state.

Called Superior Stick, the new lighting system can be attached directly to the end of the plow.

The latest innovation has no moving parts and can be extended or pulled in accordingly along with the wing plow blade to make it better visible and reliable.

L’Anse maintenance supervisor John Dault said: "We have this innovative wing plow but, where we needed it, we had a lot of intersections, passing relief lanes and business entrances where we couldn’t use it.

"This light makes the wing plow acceptable. We’ve innovated a feature that really works."

Image: Wing plow trucks use new lighting system to make the plows more visible. Photo: courtesy of Michigan government.