Snow plows are scheduled to hit the streets of Winnipeg Thursday night as the city continues to get walloped by an early blast of winter weather.
A Colorado Low pushing into southern Manitoba is bringing with it a mix of wet snow and rain, with as much as 10 cm of snow expected to fall in Winnipeg, according to Environment Canada.
Crews started sanding bridges and overpasses in time for the Thursday morning commute, and the city said salting operations have also started on main routes, to improve traction.
Plowing major streets and bus routes will start at 11 p.m. Thursday, the city said in an afternoon media release.
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There are currently no winter parking bans in effect.
Michael Cantor, who heads up street maintenance with the city, said crews were ready for the blast of winter.
“Since last night, we switched temporarily to a winter maintenance mode to prepare for the weather and road conditions,” Cantor told 680CJOB.
The winter maintenance mode allows sanding trucks and even plows to be on standby ready to react, he added.
“We have plows ready to go and we also make sure our contractors are ready to address this snowfall in case we need to call them in.”
Once the temperature dropped under 2 C, Cantor said they made the decision to begin salting the bridges.
The Colorado Low began in southern Manitoba and northwestern Ontario Thursday morning, bringing with it winds expected to gust up to 60-70 km/h.