What you should know about Snow Plowing on County Roads

We all count on roads to get to work, to the doctor’s office, to shop or to visit family. But snow, ice and windy conditions can make driving hazardous. We know that people are anxious to see that snow plow or grader come by. Here are some facts about winter road maintenance. Above all – rest assure the County puts a high priority on getting out there to clear your road!

There are over 3,000 kilometers of roads in the County. After a heavy snowfall or strong winds, all of these roads require clearing. It is important to have a plan to ensure plowing is efficient and fair. Read these common questions to learn more about road clearing, and check our road updates by clicking the Twitter icon on website.

The most common question residents ask is “WHERE DO THE SNOW PLOWS START?” Naturally everyone wants to be first when the clearing begins. To make things fair – there is a different start and end point every time. This way – no one is always first, and no one is always last on the route. There are a total of thirteen grader routes in the County that each cover 200 kilometers of roads. The start and end points follow a pre-plotted sequence.

Will the County send a plow to your road if you call to ask? The answer is – no*. Just imagine how much time and money could be spent by sending plows off the route to respond to every plea from a resident or business. The best thing to do is let them stick to their route. The priority is to clear the County’s road network as efficiently and quickly as possible, followed by general cleanup.

If you are truly experiencing a medical emergency situation – don’t call the County – please call 911. The County follows a protocol when dealing with emergency situations. Should there be a need to send assistance to clear your road and get you out – this call is made by emergency responders and the County will do its part.

What if I NEED to get to town and the roads are impassable? If you have a medical condition, or if you have a job where you are required to get to town every day – please plan ahead for unexpected bad weather. Make sure you have the right 4X4 vehicle - or another way to travel such as a snowmobile. Listen to the weather forecast and make your plans accordingly. Most rural residents know that when they choose to live in the country, getting snowed in can happen. Any and all roads can become impassable with extreme weather and it’s important to have food and supplies to last for several days during a bad storm.

How long will it take to clear the roads after a snowstorm? This also varies. If there is a lot of snow, or if the snow is heavy and moist, or if there is a strong wind, it can take longer to move the snow and fight drifts – and can take several days to complete road clearing. On average, about 2,500 equipment hours are spent yearly on sanding and plowing, with 4,500 metric tones of sand and salt being used on County roads and 21,000 hours of grader time on gravel road maintenance. The County will bring in extra help if it is required.

When does the clearing begin? During a winter storm, plows, graders and operators get ready for action – but – no plowing starts until the storm event STOPS. It’s better to wait until the plowing will be effective, even though it’s understandable that everyone wishes it could start sooner. Starting sooner is not always better – there are temperatures and times where plowing is simply not effective.

Timing can be severely affected by the amount of snow, temperature, continuing bad weather such as wind causing drifts or by poor visibility. If the visibility means motorists and plow or grader operators can’t see each other, plowing will be delayed until the visibility improves, for everyone’s safety on the road. Once the plowing rotations begin, plows won’t return to a road until the entire rotation is complete.

How much does it cost to clear the roads? It’s hard to answer this because it can vary depending on the severity of the weather, but can be as high as $90,000. The costs to clear roads includes equipment and labour, involving plow trucks in hamlets and on paved roads and graders on gravel roads.

Are bus routes plowed first? Some people think the schedule is set by school bus routes, however, school buses travel on so many miles or roads that it is impossible to assign a priority to one bus route over another. After a significant snow fall, school buses and other types of vehicles may not be able to travel during these times, and will also have to wait for plowing to be completed.

 *Please note that the County is putting all of its staff time and effort into road clearing after a significant snowfall. We welcome your calls but you can also check road conditions and the status of road clearing on your computer: go to our website – www.rdcounty.ca and click on ‘Twitter’ to read the latest news on roads. Please check here before you call, to let staff focus on dealing with the road situation.