Safety is the highest value in managing the road.

Prior to driving the winter road, all drivers and workers must undergo a mandatory safety orientation that includes a competency quiz. This includes reviewing the rules of the road.

When trucks are ready to drive up the road, they are designated a dispatch time in a computerized system and drivers are required to check in 30 minutes prior to departure at the designated Yellowknife Dispatch. At this location, all their paper work is checked over to ensure their load is allowed on the ice. After being briefed by dispatch personnel of any daily information the trucks are dispatched north usually in convoys of 3-4 trucks every 20 minutes.

An experienced drivers (who have driven the road for more than 3 years) leads the convoy of four. 

While accidents are rare, when they have occurred they have been relatively minor, given the very slow speed of travel regulated on the road, proper security, and good training. ​