How Do Railroads Clear Snow? When a winter storm hits, snowdrifts can blanket the tracks, posing a challenge for locomotives. Equipped with a plow at the front, locomotives can push some snow away. However, when the snow is too deep for the locomotive plow to manage, railroads employ a specialized snow removal equipment known as the rotary snowplow. The rotary snowplow features a large circular set of blades on its front end, designed to rotate and cut through the snow on the track ahead. Spinni