Media Contact:	John Lisle (DDOT) at (202) 486-5838
	Ayanna Smith (OCTO) at (202) 724-5178

(Washington, DC) — A website that monitors creative government initiatives has confirmed what many District residents already know: the city has one of the best online tools for tracking snow removal efforts.  OhMyGov says the DC Snow Map, provides a “snow mountain of useful information” and is ranked a close second in a review of government snow removal websites across the nation.

The DC Snow Map was developed by the Office of the Chief Technology Officer (OCTO) and the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) and allows users to search by address or intersection to see what streets have been plowed and salted.  Animation on the map shows the progress of the plows, and integrated links to DDOT’s traffic cameras allow users to check the real time road conditions.

"When a blizzard traps you and brings your life to a halt, it’s a comfort – and sometimes vital - to know when that snow plow will arrive to set you free,” said DC Chief Technology Officer Bryan Sivak. "The Snow Map is just one of many examples of how the District has leveraged technology to make city services more efficient and helpful for our residents."

OhMyGov researched and rated the “10 Best Cities for Tracking Snow Removal Online” and said the DC Snow Map was a close contender for the top spot.  Only the City of Spokane, Washington got higher marks for its online snow removal tracking tool.

 “That’s great news, and it reinforces the great feedback we’ve already gotten from residents,” said DDOT Director Gabe Klein. “The Snow Map lets them see much of the same information we use to monitor our snow removal operations, and gives them a better idea of when they can expect service.”

In the period between January 29 and February 15, which included back-to-back blizzards in 5 days, 40,071 users logged on to snowmap.dc.gov to track the snow plows. Traffic on the site peaked on February 8 when 7,804 people used the tool, and February 11 when 7,473 people logged on.