AASHTO Journal - MassDOT Kicks Off 2nd Annual ‘Name a Snowplow’ Contest

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation recently launched its second annual “Name a Snowplow” contest for elementary school students statewide. Winners of the contest, which seeks to solicit names for 12 MassDOT snowplows that will be in service for the upcoming 2023-2024 winter season, will be announced December 22.

[Above photo by MassDOT]

“This contest is a great way to celebrate the winter season in New England, encourage the creativity of our young people, and to thank all the dedicated members of our crews who keep our roads and bridges cleared during severe weather,” said MassDOT Acting Secretary and CEO Monica Tibbits-Nutt in a statement.

“We truly appreciate all the people who work on the front lines regardless of the weather in all sectors of the economy and this is one gesture of thanks,” she said.

“This contest was well received last winter and we know there are many good suggestions out there once again for naming our plows this season,” added MassDOT Highway Administrator Jonathan Gulliver.

“We want to use the contest as a way to recognize our dedicated workforce and at the same time give students an opportunity to have some fun naming plows as it helps connect young people with the public servants who do the work,” he said.

The application deadline for the MassDOT snowplow naming contest is December 1 and entries can be submitted by using an online portal: https://www.mass.gov/forms/name-a-snowplow-contest-submission. There is no limit to the number of applications that can be submitted per school, MassDOT said, and the contest winners will be invited to participate in a scheduled snowplow unveiling event.

The agency added that winning submissions will be evaluated based on two grade-level categories, kindergarten through fourth grade and fifth grade through eighth grade.

During MassDOT’s first snowplow naming contest last winter, the winning names were: Flurry Fighter, Luke Snowalker, Plower Ranger, Sherlock Snowmes, Snowdrop, Arctic Beast, Sled Zeppelin, Snow day No Way, Blizzard Wizard, Snow Big Deal, Snow Time to Lose, and Blizzard of Oz. Those names which were placed on the sides of the agency’s snowplow trucks in 2022 and remain on those vehicles.