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City: Not enough no-parking signs to tell people where we're plowing

By: Staff Writer

Tuesday, Mar. 5, 2013 at 12:38 PM | Comments: 1

As city crews work 12-hour shifts around the clock this week, they won't be able to give people much notice before plowing their streets.

"The city of Brandon simply doesn’t have enough ‘No Parking’ signage to be able to sign each street before we come in with equipment," said Ian Broome, the city's director of public works. He says they're asking people to watch for plows in the area, and to move their vehicles from the street if they spot plows nearby.

There are no current plans to ticket or tow vehicles that are left out during plowing, but a vehicle parked on the street will mean streets are left with uneccesary snow ridges and ruts.

After 20 cm of snow fell in about a 24-hour period, extra graders and loaders have been contracted to deal with a city-wide snow-clearing effort.

For the bulk of the week, the city says crews will be working on top-priority streets, while private contractors will be used to clear residential streets. First up will be streets that run east-west, followed by streets that run north-south.

"Some city streets are not entirely passable right now, making for unsafe driving conditions," Broome said. "We want our streets to be returned to safe winter driving conditions as soon as possible."

Pedestrians will also have to put up with delays, although snow clearing will focus, where possible, on designated walking and biking paths and areas adjacent to bus routes and schools.

"Large piles of snow … will be pushed against the curbs in many neighbourhoods," Broome said. "While it may mean sidewalks aren’t in ideal shape for pedestrians this week, our main goal is to remove the snow from the area as quickly and as efficiently as we possibly can."

The city says that people can give them a hand by clearing the sidewalk in front of their own property.

Businesses are required to have their sidewalks cleared by 10 a.m. the day after a snowfall.

While garbage and recycling collection is still running this week, regular pick-up may be delayed by the fact that back lanes must be cleared first.

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Posted by:jeepster

March 6, 2013 at 7:36 AM

Maybe buy enough signs and quit wasting our money! Streets are more important than downtown renewing!

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