Winter has arrived – again – and the Public Works snow fighting crews are out in full force. Based on the current conditions, strong sunshine and weather forecast, the City will not declare a snow emergency.
Here’s a summary of our overnight snow clearing and today’s operation plan:
- Last night, we had several pieces of equipment out citywide focused on arterial streets, parkways, hills and bus routes.
- Bike lanes were plowed and treated.
- Our alley contractor started clearing alleys this morning.
- Public Works staff continued to apply material on the arterial streets to address bonded ice.
- Staff will be plowing the center lanes on residential routes today, with the goal of covering all routes within a 12-hour day.
With the warm ground and pavement temperatures, we are seeing a lot of snow consolidating, compacting, and melting resulting in snow depths under 4” across the city. We are seeing mild temperatures in the forecast for the weekend and expect thawing and refreezing on our roadways and sidewalks.
In the coming days, we’ll patrol for slick spots and widen where cars have moved. We may begin clearing corners on arterial streets or removing snow piles based on resources available. The focus is on transit corridors and the Pedestrian Priority Network. We will also have staff checking for slick spots on bike lanes and will be working corners and center medians along the trail system.