Town Committee of the Whole discusses adjusting snow removal policy

By John Watson Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

The Town of Strathmore Committee of the Whole discussed the Winter Road, Pathway and Sidewalk Maintenance Policy, 3203, during the June 11 meeting.

Discussion around the policy follows several requests received by council to add several additional roads to the snow removal plan for the upcoming season.

“As we move into the warm smoky, summer months, winter may feel like a distant memory for many; however, for the operations team, winter and snow are never far from our minds,” said Operations Manager, Donna McCallum. “We are continually analyzing, planning, and preparing for the upcoming winter season to ensure we remain ready to respond effectively when it returns.”

Any additional roads added to the policy may have financial tax implications for future rates. Currently, the cost for plowing and sanding priority routes costs the Town $4,981.10 per kilometer, while snow removal costs are $1,753.58 per kilometer.

Administration detailed to the committee, enhancing service levels by adding additional roads to the priority network would increase total costs per kilometer and would necessitate additional staffing, equipment, and would require an expansion of the snow dump. 

Plowing commences when accumulation reaches five centimeters, and snow removal on priority routes occurs when driving lanes are reduced by 50 per cent, or the snow storage location exceeds 100 centimeters.

Removal on non-priority routes takes place only under extreme conditions when street snow storage exceeds 100 centimeters, impedes storm drainage, or is directed under an extreme weather event. 

“Our Priority 1 routes are to be plowed and have ice control 24 hours after the conclusion of a snow event. Priority 2s are 48 hours after the snow event is concluded, and Priority 3s are 72 hours after,” said McCallum. “We continuously monitor weather conditions to ensure timely and effective road maintenance based on the forecast. We may apply calcium to prewet the roads in advance of the snow event. This pretreatment improves the adherence of sand, enhances ice melting, and helps prevent ice from bonding to the road surface, making snow maintenance more efficient.”

Between Nov. 24 and April 21, Strathmore received 116 cm of snow spread across 24 days, resulting in 49 days of operational response.

This was indicated to be a below average season, consistent with the trend observed over the last several years.

It was also noted, 76 cm of the total snowfall occurred between Nov. 18 and Nov. 23 of last year. 

The currently allocated budget for snow maintenance activities is $575,000, which is approximately 15 per cent of the total $4 million annual roads budget. For the most recent snow season, the total cost incurred was $375,241.74 to the town.

As the policy was presented before the committee of the whole, no voting took place during the meeting. It will be presented again before Council at a future date.