DENVER (KDVR) — If you have travel plans this weekend, it is time to make a backup plan. 

“Whatever your plans are, you need to get to your destination before the storm hits,” Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) spokesperson Tamara Rollison told FOX31. 

CDOT is already planning ahead for the anticipated snowstorm that could drop more than a foot of powder across the Front Range. 

“We are prepared for the worst,” Rollison said. 

Plows can be deployed as early as Thursday and will be working around the clock as soon as the snow begins. 

“Our crews focus on the major interstates — on I-25, on I-70 and others. And when the snow is coming down hard and heavy, they make continuous rounds on those roadways,” Rollison said. 

However, travel may still be extremely difficult or impossible in many parts of the state. 

“It will be difficult for [plows] to get onto other secondary roads to clear those until the snow stops and they have a chance to catch up,” Rollison said. 

CDOT is expecting this weekend’s storm to be more significant than usual and to have an impact on travel statewide. It could rank among the heaviest snowfall events in state history. 

“Maybe not such an unusual thing for the mountains but for the Denver metro area region, we are bracing for a big storm,” Rollison said. 

If driving conditions are poor, CDOT says drivers should expect closures particularly along the Interstate 70 mountain corridor, on I-70 east of Denver International Airport and within the I-25 Gap Project Area. 

“We call these safety closures. We close them in advance so that we can avoid motorists from getting stranded,” Rollison said. 

If you must head out during the storm, make sure your vehicle has a full tank of gas and is stocked with plenty of water, snacks and winter gear. 

“We are anticipating a whopper of a storm this weekend and so we will be advising motorists to stay off the road during the storm,” Rollison said.