All Greater Sudbury roads are expected to be cleared by 12 p.m. on Dec. 29, assuming more snow doesn’t fall by then.
This is in keeping with city policy that all roads are cleared within 24 hours of a snow event ending. City Linear Infrastructure director Brittany Hallam indicating the latest event was considered over at 12 p.m. on Dec. 28.
“Things are going fairly well,” she said during the early afternoon of Dec. 28, adding a full deployment of crews, both city and contractor running more than 50 machines, were working hard to clear off both roads and sidewalks.
An average of between nine and 10 centimetres fell in Greater Sudbury between the evening of Dec. 27 and late morning on Dec. 28, which brings this year’s total accumulation since Dec. 15 to 35 cm.
Although it’s anticipated city roads will be cleared within the 24-hour timeframe, Hallam told Sudbury.com it might take a bit longer for crews to clear sidewalks due to staffing levels, but they should be clear by late afternoon on Dec. 29 at the latest.
“When we’re calling in staff on holidays and weekends, we’re not working with the full complement,” she said of sidewalk crews, noting contractors are available to help clear roads during weekends, but not sidewalks. With a “significant amount of accumulation” of snow during the past few days, sidewalks have become a challenge.
As of the early afternoon of Dec. 28, Hallam said the city’s main roads had, for the most part, been cleared more than once and that all the main roads had been salted and sanded earlier in the storm event.
This work will continue in conjunction with clearing the balance of city roads in time for the 12 p.m. Dec. 29 deadline. With temperatures expected to fluctuate around 0 C, Hallam said the city will also be on the lookout for slippery road conditions, which trigger salting and sanding.
There have been three full call-outs of city and contractor snow-clearing crews so far this season, including on Dec. 15, 23 and 28. Thus far, they’ve managed to clear all streets within 24 hours of snow events ending, “for the most part.”
“Some streets were unintentionally missed, which can happen especially at the beginning of the season with operators unfamiliar with their routes,” Hallam said.
The city’s snow-clearing efforts have remained unchanged from previous years, with the most recent update the addition of a mechanical icebreaker to help tackle city sidewalks.
The city’s policies dictate all roads are clear and passable within 24 hours of a winter storm event ending. More specifically, the timeline says:
- Main routes are sanded and salted within four hours of a snow storm beginning
- Main roads are cleared within eight hours of a storm ending when at least five centimeters of snow has fallen
- All residential and rural roads are plowed and sanded within 24 hours of a storm ending, by which time sidewalks have also been plowed and sanded
- Bus stops are cleared during the first night following a storm in which at least eight centimeters of snow has dropped
The city’s class one to three roads (main arterial or secondary collector roads) are cleared to bare or near-bare pavement, while the balance of city roads are maintained to a snow-packed and sanded surface. Click here for a list of which roads are considered class one to three.
A change to the Municipal Act made in 2020 allows the city to suspend standard timelines in the event of significant weather events, after which normal timelines prevail.
The city hasn’t had to suspend normal timelines thus far in the 2022-23 winter season, Hallam said. In the event roads aren’t clear within the 24-hour period, she encourages people to contact the city, “so we can make sure that’s noted and we get on top of that as soon as possible.”
The city can be contacted through the online 311 portal, accessible 24/7, as well as the 311 customer service phone number and online live chat, which are available from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Greater Sudbury Safer Sidewalks co-founder Maria Bozzo is also encouraging people to contact both the municipality and city councillors in the event sidewalks are unsafe for pedestrians.
“This year, especially the most recent storms, point to the fact improvements are needed,” she told Sudbury.com, adding the same issues that plagued city sidewalks in past years have prevailed.
In her neighbourhood, parents with strollers attempting to make their way to a private daycare have found themselves walking on the road rather than the sidewalks.
“I don’t see anyone with a walker out these days, so people become housebound,” she said.
Championed by Ward 8 Coun. Al Sizer, Bozzo said she’s looking forward to a report by city administration sometime in 2023, which proposes sidewalk winter maintenance improvements.
Until then, she encourages people to let both the city and its elected officials know what they think about sidewalk conditions.
Tyler Clarke covers city hall and political affairs for Sudbury.com.
