Nashville expands snow plow fleet to 45 trucks, with new student-named vehicles unveiled

New trucks and new names enter service ahead of winter weather

Nashville officials have expanded the city’s snow-plow fleet to 45 trucks, adding five vehicles as part of a broader effort to increase winter road treatment capacity and improve neighborhood coverage. The expansion brings the fleet to a level that Metro leaders have tied to changes made after the January 2024 winter storm, when travel disruptions and uneven treatment outcomes triggered a reexamination of the city’s snow and ice operations.

City leaders said 36 of the 45 trucks are new “state-of-the-art” vehicles, reflecting a significant modernization of the equipment used to treat and clear streets during winter events. The upgrades are paired with an operations model that relies on predetermined routes, a shift intended to speed response times and reduce gaps in service across the county.

A route-based strategy adds hundreds of miles of treated roads

Nashville’s current winter plan is organized around 80 snow-removal routes for plows. Metro transportation officials have said the route system enabled the city to add about 600 miles of road coverage that will be treated during storms, targeting areas that had previously been less consistently served.

For the 2025–2026 winter season, the city’s winter supplies and treatment materials include:

• 9,300 tons of salt
• 100,000 gallons of brine solution
• 40,000 gallons of calcium chloride

Officials said truck operators are trained on the established routes and that coordination has been set with the Tennessee Department of Transportation for storm response.

Student contest results in five named and decorated plows

Five of the city’s snow plows now carry names and artwork created through a Metro Nashville Public Schools student contest. The names introduced include Dolly Plowton, Snowella, Blizzard of Oz, Music City Plow, and Frosty the Snow Plow.

The contest approach mirrors a wider public-sector trend in which transportation agencies use community naming efforts to increase public awareness of winter operations and safety, though Nashville’s implementation is tied specifically to local student participation and newly added equipment.

Preparedness framed around reliability and consistency

Metro leaders have consistently framed the updated winter plan as a readiness initiative designed to improve consistency across neighborhoods and strengthen the city’s ability to treat roads before and during storms.

With expanded equipment, defined routes, and stocked treatment supplies, the city is positioning its winter response around operational repeatability—an emphasis aimed at making road treatment patterns more predictable for residents and emergency services during the region’s periodic snow and ice events.