Cincinnati Snowplow Tracker Crashes Under Demand

CINCINNATI – Cincinnati introduced a new online snowplow tracker that quickly became a hit with residents, but its popularity led to an unexpected issue. The system crashed and was unavailable for most of the day, causing frustration among users who were eager to track the progress of snowplow operations.

The data used by the tracker comes from upgraded digital tablets installed in the plow trucks. These devices allow drivers to monitor their routes and provide real-time updates on where snowplows have been. This technology is part of a broader effort to improve the city's response to winter weather.

Caption:
Cincinnati’s new online snowplow tracker was so popular with the public that it crashed and was unavailable for most of the day. The data comes from upgraded digital tablets in the plow trucks, which allow drivers to track their routes. (WKRC, Provided)

City Council member Seth Walsh highlighted the importance of these upgrades. He explained that the improvements were made following a severe winter storm in January 2025, during which 600 streets remained unplowed. At the time, the tracking systems in place were not accurate enough to meet the needs of residents.

“That was the goal over the summer, making sure we had an accurate snowplow tracker,” Walsh said. “Not only so that citizens could see if their streets have been plowed, when they've been touched, etc., but so that we knew what streets were being plowed.”

Although the city was unable to speak directly with Local 12 about the incident, cybersecurity consultant Dave Hatter provided insight into why such crashes can occur. He noted that when a software application is used more than expected, it can lead to system failures.

“There are a lot of people that live in the Greater Cincinnati area,” Hatter said. “Who knows how many people would have known about this app and decided to try it, right? It could have been a couple of hundred or tens of thousands of people.”

Hatter also pointed out that even large companies can face similar challenges, especially during high-traffic periods like the holidays.

“You can always try to estimate what the load is going to be and then build to that,” Hatter said. “But if you want to build something that has more than enough capacity so these kinds of things don't happen, that gets a lot more expensive. You're trying to balance it: ‘How do I support the load with the minimal expense?’”

Despite the technical difficulties, Walsh emphasized that the city was still able to gather valuable data on how the fleet performed. Early reports indicate a significant improvement in the efficiency of snowplow operations.

“We did not expect the level of popularity that it had,” Walsh said. “That was a lesson we learned today: that we need to be ready for a lot of people watching, and frankly, that's a good thing. That's a good problem to have. It's a sign that people trust that we're putting the right pieces together to solve this problem going forward.”

Walsh encouraged residents to reach out to any city council member or the winter operations program if their street has not been cleared by the plow trucks. He expressed confidence that the city will continue to refine and improve its systems to better serve the community.