There is an old saying that goes “diversity is the spice of life.” The Onondaga County DOT is definitely a subscriber to that line of thought based on the numerous makes and models of plow trucks in their yard.
I stopped by the North Area Maintenance Facility two days ago to check out the action. I figured I might get lucky and catch a few trucks coming and going and that is exactly what I got. My timing was almost perfect and I was able to catch a few trucks returning from their runs. If I had arrived just a few minutes earlier the incoming amount of rigs would have been one for the books. The yard was full of activity with drivers loading salt and topping off fuel tanks. Trucks scheduled for the night shift were left outside while the rest where pulled into a large garage.
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The first truck (191) in the gallery below I snagged through my windshield while at a stop light. There was no time for zooming or framing but I think it came out okay after some cropping. The Freightliner 114SD provided the nicest catch of the evening as he slowly approached the turn into the garage. Upon seeing the the red Kenworth at the fuel island I thought it belonged to a local municipality but it turned out to be this truck from months back. As far as I know it is the only Kenworth in the fleet. It would join the night shift lineup that consisted of a Sterling and a Volvo.
So there you have it, the diversity of Onondaga County DOT. Only two trucks makes were absent, Western Star and Mack. I know OCDOT has more than a few Western Stars on the road but no Macks. This happens to be a tad ironic considering Beam Mack is located directly across the street from the garage!
Nice catch. The 114’s are starting to grow on me a bit, although I’m not much on those breather units on the side of the hood. Looks like a cheap stick on accessory. See if you can catch some more of their Western Stars. They seem to be the favorite of the Onondaga fleet, and the sharpest looking trucks out there for a plow.
Great series Eric. You know how I love Onondaga County’s fleet! By the way, there is a Mack in the fleet there although I have never seen it. It is No. 134, a 2009 Granite GU713 tandem dump with double wings and a 2-way reversible front plow. Since I live in NJ now, I’ll leave it up to you CNY residents to track this elusive truck down!
For the detail guys out there, here is the rundown on the trucks in your slide show:
No. 191 = 2001 International 2674 6×4
No. 139 = 2012 Freightliner 114SD (No. 138 is the twin to this truck.)
No. 184 = 2006 Sterling 8501
No. 130 = 2008 Volvo VHD64F
No. 162 = 2009 Volvo VHD64F
No. 147 = 2012 Kenworth T-800
The last photo is another Sterling but I can’t see the truck number.
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