Borough of CDN-NDG prepares for a big snow blow

While some might assume that public works officials wait around until snow is falling to get out their equipment, they actually track weather forecasts in order to help plan a strategy before the first flake has hit the ground.

Côte des Neiges-NDG has 228 kilometres of streets that must be cleared and 449 kilometres of sidewalks. To do the work, the borough has an annual budget of $7 million.

A total of 36 vehicles of various kinds (salt and abrasive spreaders, sidewalk plows) are used for removing the snow. At least 130 workers divided into seven crews are involved in removal operations. On average every winter, the borough fills 25,000 dump trucks with snow.

The average length of snowloading operations depends on the amount of snow that has fallen on the ground. It can vary from four days for an accumulation of 15 to 20 centimetres, up to eight days for a 35- to 40-centimetre snowfall. The time can also vary depending on the density of the snow. When the snow is more dense, it takes more trucks to take it away, so the loading will take longer.

The borough determines snow-loading routes ahead of time, according to various priorities. In descending order those priorities are: the main traffic arteries, police and fire departments, hospital emergency accesses, bus routes metro station accesses, highway service roads, schools, streets with large numbers of residents, and streets located on steep hills.

Plowing goes on constantly during and immediately after a snowfall. When there is more than 15 centimetres of snow on the ground, the borough declares the start of a snow-loading operation. After crews have finished clearing the snow from the sidewalks and streets, no-parking signs are put up to warn residents to keep the streets free of parked cars.

Storms that leave behind more than 30 centimetres of snow are the most difficult to deal with. Despite the image of modern snow removal equipment as unassailable, it actually becomes more difficult for sidewalk plows to operate as the snow grows deep. For this and other reasons, the borough has a bylaw that prohibits property owners from dumping snow from their property onto the public thoroughfare. However, it is also possible to obtain a special permit.

The borough has a number of recommendations residents can follow in order to facilitate snow removal operations: keep your snow on your own property; so as not to interfere with snow removal vehicles, park your car parallel to the curb, not on an angle, when parking on the street; quickly pick up your recycling bin once the recycling truck has been by; when out in the car, always stay a safe distance behind snow-removal vehicles; and winter is a great time to start using public transit.