Fleets of snow removal trucks hit the roads in Montreal on Wednesday, with almost 2,200 snow-clearing vehicles deployed to clean the over 10,000 kilometres of roads and sidewalks.
Yet, as the city launched its first full-scale snow-clearing operations, Mayor Valérie Plante faced some tough criticism from one of her West Island counterparts.
Pierrefonds-Roxboro Mayor Jim Beis said he’s unhappy that Plante has requested post-mortems from city workers in order to see which boroughs need to improve their operations.
READ MORE: Montreal to launch first major snow clearing operation
“I have a problem with that,” he told Global News.
“How do we make sure when all the boroughs say: ‘We’re good, we put salt everywhere,’ when in some situations, you have to do it twice?”
Beis said he feels the city could learn a thing or two from the West Island.
WATCH BELOW: Montreal launches snow removal operations
“We need to tone it down and talk around a table,” he argued.
“It’s been over a year this administration has been in power, and not once have we had communication with the mayor’s cabinet to discuss day-to-day operations.”
Plante insists conversations are ongoing.
READ MORE: Partial snow-clearing operation underway in Montreal
“We did consult. His directors were part of that. We did consultations last year to be ready for this year,” she said.
For the latest updates on snow removal, the city is encouraging residents to consult Info-Neige.