Continued snowfall in Calgary on Friday caused city streets to become slick and traffic to slow on most roads.
In an update issued on Friday morning, the City of Calgary said about five centimetres of snow fell overnight with another five centimetres expected throughout the day on Friday.
They said city crews were out all night working on major routes and laying down a sand- and salt-coated gravel mixture called “pickle.”
Under the City of Calgary’s Snow and Ice Control program (SNIC) crews sand, salt and plow city streets that receive the heaviest traffic, moving on to lower-priority roads once those are clear.
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Though crews were able to work on so-called Priority 2 Routes intermittently in the past few days, crews again re-focused their efforts on Priority 1 Routes on Friday to help keep the highest number of Calgarians travelling safely.
In addition, crews are working on clearing snow from steps and walks, pedestrian overpasses, bus pads and LRT stations.
The City of Calgary’s annual snow- and ice-control budget is $38 million.
On Oct. 2, Anna Melnick with the City of Calgary told Global News they had “approximately $10 million left for this season,” which is expected to get drivers through until the end of December.
“If we need to we have a reserve fund of about $15 million,” she added.
Slick Calgary streets cause crashes and closures
The slippery streets caused the Calgary Police Service to temporarily shut down Shaganappie Trail N.W. between Country Hills Boulevard N.W. and John Laurie Boulevard N.W., starting at about 8:45 a.m.
It was reopened to traffic about one hour later.
The slick and snowy roads are thought to be contributing factors in a number of collisions throughout the city. According to Calgary police, 28 collisions were reported between midnight and 8 a.m., including seven with injuries.