Just spoke with the highway department. We have 29 trucks out plowing the
roads. The main roads are all open but many of the side roads are not. We had no
reported power outages or downed trees. The snow is extremely heavy - --it's
taking the crews a very long time clearing the snow from the roads. It could
8:10 AM).Suggestion: You might want to wait until the plows finish the job to clean
your driveway. It's possible that you'll spend alot of time clearing the snow
from your driveway and then a truck will push more snow to the edge of your
property again.
I asked Commissioner of Public Works Victor Carosi to provide us with a
summary of snow removal operations. The following information may be
helpful.
During and after a major snow storm, the DPW fields concerns
about our operations. Perhaps the following can help residents understand our
operations and the impacts some of our operations may have directly to their own
property.
Q. Why do the plows block my driveway with snow?
A: The primary goal of plowing is to remove snow from
streets so that the road is open to vehicular traffic. Because snow plows are
designed to push snow to the side, plowing pushes snow to the curb or edge of
the street from the middle of the street. This results in snow piling up in
front of driveways. The operator cannot stop or raise the plow at each driveway
as this would leave a pile of snow in the roadway, in front of each driveway.
Residents are advised to wait until the plow has been through their road prior
to cleaning their driveway. The plows make multiple passes on a road throughout
the storm to keep the road clear. At the end of the storm, a final push is made
to clear any left-over snow and to re-apply salt. If possible, plow drivers
will try to prevent excessive snow amounts at driveways but at most times this
is just not possible. Snow piles at the edge of the driveway is a fact of snow
plowing and in most situation simply is unavoidable. Residents must understand
that the clearing of driveway is the responsibility of the resident.
Q: Why did the plow push snow up onto my shoveled
sidewalk?
A: Pushing snow onto
sidewalks occurs when the volume of snow is great and snow storage space is
minimal. It is challenging to keep the streets open and as wide as possible for
the entire snow season, while trying to remove the snow and not have it end up
deposited in the sidewalks. It is not possible to avoid snow on the sidewalks.
Please be reminded that e make multiple passes during a snow event and a final
push at the end of the storm event. It may be necessary for the resident to
clear snow multiple times from a sidewalk. Please do not push the snow into the
street as our operator will continue to push snow from the street until it is
clear.
Q: Why was a plow on the street next to mine but did not
plow my street?
A: There are 26 routes throughout the Town; the plow
you saw may not be the same plow assigned to your street.
Q: My street was not plowed! Why?
A: Plow operators have routes to follow. All streets
do get plowed. Some are plowed before others as a matter of efficiency of the
routing. In major snow events, it may take several hours between passes and the
snow may accumulate significantly between passes. Please call 693-8121 for
problems with your street.
Q: When does the Town start to plow snow?
A: As soon as snow begins to accumulate during any
snow/ice event, Public Works will begin plowing the larger “arterial” streets to
keep them passable and allow traffic to continue flowing. Generally, after an
accumulation of about 2-inches we begin to plow, as salting is no longer
practical.
Q: How long does it take to plow the entire Town?
A: The Town plows over 130 miles of roads. When there
is 6” or less snowfall it would typically take about 6 hours to plow the entire
Town. With snow falls over 6” it can take substantially more time to clear the
streets. Once plowing is completed, we begin cleaning intersections and do a
final cleanup of streets.
Q: Why does plowing take so long?
A: There are 26 plow routes throughout the Town which
encompass 260 lane miles. The Public Works typically has 34 employees using 30
pieces of equipment and 4 front end loaders, plus 5 supervisors, 7 mechanics
during a major snow event. Additional staff from Building Maintenance and Parks
clears Town buildings and sidewalks.
Q: A parked car was in the way before the plow came,
can the plow come back?
A: Yes, residents should call 693-8121 to report that
a section of their street was not plowed because of an obstructing vehicle. The
Highway Department will re-plow when time permits.
Q: I parked my car
at the edge of my driveway, yet you still plowed me in.
A: Some residents park their cars parallel to their
driveway. This greatly hampers the plow operator from safely performing snow
removal operations. It also places your vehicle at risk for damage. The plow
operator has no choice but to push snow up to the vehicle, depositing a large
amount of snow adjacent to the parked vehicle. The vehicle is also noted and
the Police are alerted to the situation. We urge residents not to park your car
in such a manner that you obstruct the street and create a potentially dangerous
situation. It is a fact of plowing that snow plow operations will deposit snow
across driveways. It is unavoidable.
Q: My mailbox was damaged by the Town snow plow.
A: The Town plowing operations occur throughout the
storm. At times, visibility is greatly diminished and occasionally mailboxes
are damaged from the weight of the snow pushed to the edge of the roadway. The
Town’s liability for damage is protected, but we ask you to call the Highway
Department at 693-8121 to report the damage. We will try to make a repair as a
courtesy to our residents, but have limitations on what we can repair.
Victor G. Carosi,
P.E.
Commissioner of Public Works
