Snow-clearing policy review in Winnipeg due after the spring thaw

A review of Winnipeg's snow-clearing policy is coming to city council but not until most of this winter's accumulation has melted.

Tweaks to snow removal could save the city money, public works chair says

Bartley Kives CBC News Posted: Mar 09, 2018 7:25 PM EST | Last Updated: March 10, 2018

Workers are chipping away at sidewalk snow and ice by hand in downtown Winnipeg, four days after the largest snowfall of the year. (Travis Golby/CBC)

A review of Winnipeg's snow-clearing policy is coming to city council but not until most of this winter's accumulation has melted. A report recommending changes to the city's snow-clearing procedures will be ready in April, city council public works chair Marty Morantz said.

"It's just an overall review of our snow-clearing policy, and hopefully with innovative alternatives that will result in cost-saving measures for taxpayers,"Morantzsaid Friday, as city crews continued to clean up from the largest accumulation of the season.

Back-lane plowing, spot sanding underway in Winnipeg as snow clearing continues

Analysis
Legends of the snowfall: Busting a few myths about Winnipeg's winter

An average of 22 centimetres of snow fell in Winnipeg between Sunday and Tuesday. This prompted the first full snow-clearing operation of a winter that saw the city experience only a few dustings of snow before March.

The cost of this week's operation may reach $7 million, said Cheryl Anderson, the acting manager of streetsmaintainancefor the city.

The total snow-clearing budget for the season is $34 million. But the budget is just a target thatdoes not dictate how the city clears snow.

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Right now, the city is governed by a snow-clearing policy that requires major streets to be cleared after three centimetres of snow accumulates, while it takes five centimetres of snow to trigger plowing of other bus routes, collector streets and back lanes.

Residential streets are cleared after a 10-centimetre accumulation or when public works officials determine ruts on a particular street are dangerous.

Sidewalks may be cleared after five to eight centimetresof snow, depending where they are.

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Morantz said he has not read the review of this policy. Anderson offered no hints, aside from suggesting the city will continue to experiment with alternatives to road salt, such as beet juice.

Anderson said the city will continue to work on trouble spots over the weekend, including sidewalks. A snow-hauling program is planned for Sunday.

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