Crews continue to remove remains of record snowfall
It was one of the biggest snowfalls in years and took days to clear the streets. Now, it’s time to get rid of all the snow.
This week, city crews are hard at work removing those massive snowbanks off the side of the road.
“It’s the biggest one in the last five years that we’ve had,” said Bryden Denyes, the city of Ottawa’s area manager, urban roads.
Last Monday almost 50cm of snow fell in the capital, and still more fell Wednesday.
Today, a lot of it still sits on the side of residential streets.
“It was definitely a challenging storm to get through,” says Denyes. “There was a lot of snow that came down. And then we had another storm right after. It took a little while to get stuff treated, but we’ve got everything open up now and now we’re doing the final cleanup.”
Denyes is in charge of making sure everyone can get from A to B as safely as possible during these tough winter months. His crew on Monday was filling trucks with thousands of pounds of snow, clearing each street one by one of what remains of the storm.
“We started our full snow removal operations this past night,” he said. “And it will be ongoing for at least two weeks, maybe a bit longer depending on weather conditions. If we have any more snow, obviously we have to switch to treating the storm versus snow removal. But it’s going quite well so far.”
Work follows the city’s road and sidewalk classification system. They start with priority roadways and then work down to residential areas.
If you see temporary no parking signs in your neighbourhood, keep vehicles clear of snowbanks during the posted times.
“If your vehicle is still there when we show up to do our work, we will move those vehicles to a close side street that has either been removed already, or hasn’t been,” Denyes said. “But you will also receive a ticket for impeding snow removal operations.”
The fine for that is $125, with an early payment option of $105.
Multiple crews were out in the downtown urban area on Monday. Smaller side streets should see crews beginning next week. The city is asking residents for their patients as they work as quickly as possible.
“Depending on the streets that they’re assigned to, crew size can vary,” says Denyes. “But typically the crews consist of the big snow blower, typically two graders that pull the snow. A couple sidewalk machines and anywhere from eight to sixteen trucks to haul the snow.”
All this snow will be taken to one of the city’s seven engineered snow disposal facilities across the city.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Health Canada to change sperm donor screening rules for men who have sex with men
Health Canada will change its longstanding policy restricting gay and bisexual men from donating to sperm banks in Canada, CTV News has learned. The federal health agency has adopted a revised directive removing the ban on gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men, effective May 8.
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer denied bail after being charged with killing Canadian couple
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer, one of two men charged in the killings of a Canadian couple in Dominica, has been denied bail.
LeBlanc says he plans to run in next election, under Trudeau's leadership
Cabinet minister Dominic LeBlanc says he plans to run in the next election as a candidate under Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's leadership, amid questions about his rumoured interest in succeeding his longtime friend for the top job.
U.S. vetoes a widely supported UN resolution backing full membership for Palestine
The United States has vetoed a widely backed UN resolution that would have paved the way for full United Nations membership for the state of Palestine.
Sports columnist apologizes for 'oafish' comments directed at Caitlin Clark. The controversy isn’t over
A male columnist has apologized for a cringeworthy moment during former University of Iowa superstar and college basketball’s highest scorer Caitlin Clark’s first news conference as an Indiana Fever player.
Bayer recalls hydraSense baby product over 'potential contamination'
Bayer announced Thursday it is recalling two lots of its hydraSense Baby Nasal Care Easydose due to a potential contamination.
N.L. gardening store revives 19th century seed-packing machine
Technology from the 19th century has been brought out of retirement at a Newfoundland gardening store, as staff look for all the help they can get to fill orders during a busy season.
Cat found on Toronto Pearson airport runway 3 days after going missing
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.
Grandparent scam suspects had ties to Italian organized crime, police allege
A group of suspects that allegedly defrauded seniors across Ontario and other parts of Canada using a so-called emergency grandparent scam appear to have ties to 'Italian traditional organized crime,' according to an investigator involved in the OPP-led probe.