Vancouver snow-clearing staff getting priority reminder after some pedestrian paths unplowed

Snow-clearing crews in Vancouver will receiving a briefing in the days to come after some pedestrian walkways were left unplowed on Monday, but the neighbouring bike lanes were cleared.

Images of what municipal Coun. Sarah Kirby-Yung described as a “miss in service” were shared on social media Monday morning. Areas where walking paths remain covered in snow next to plowed bike lanes included the Arbutus Greenway, the Vancouver Convention Centre and Coal Harbour.

“I spoke with city staff and I’m told they’re going to do a briefing for city crews, they’re going to some remedial work to go back and clear those pathways that were not cleared,” Kirby-Yung said in an interview.

“That should have happened with this snowfall and unfortunately it didn’t.”

In February last year, Kirby-Yung introduced a motion to Vancouver City Council about prioritizing pedestrians in the municipality’s snow protocol and response.

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Based on the motion, staff recommended the city establish expanded “Winter Priority Sidewalks” to enhance safety for pedestrians, improve equity, and align with its goals of becoming a more active city.

Walkways were to be cleared at the same time as the adjacent bike paths, but “despite the policy being updated and there being training, there was just a miss in service this time,” said Kirby-Yung.

Some of the problematic areas had already been cleared by Monday night and city crews returned to the streets on Tuesday.

Tricia Barker, a Vancouver Park Board commissioner, said it’s the municipality’s responsibility to follow through on the commitments it makes to the public, especially those with safety implications.

“I don’t know who failed on it but I think we should make sure we’re doing exactly what we say we’re going to do, and if we’re going to be putting pedestrians at the top, we have to be doing that,” she told Global News.

“We keep on saying that we’re going to put pedestrians first, people with disabilities first and that’s not happening, and I think we really need to see a shift.”

According to its website, the City of Vancouver has more than 100 vehicles and pieces of equipment for snow and ice treatment, hundreds of personnel for available for snow-clearing and about 3000 tonnes of salt.