The cities of Hamilton and Burlington, Ont., both declared significant weather events Friday afternoon, allowing the municipalities to suspend provincially set deadlines for winter maintenance.
The two neighbouring cities say the anticipated “significant snowfall” combined with high winds in the next 24 hours means they will deem all roadways and sidewalks as “in a state of repair” until revoked, as per the Ontario Municipal Act.
“The City expects that target completion times for snow removal along roads, sidewalks, multi-use paths and cycling lanes will span beyond its typical target completion time due to the significant storm overnight,” the City of Hamilton said in a statement.
Environment Canada issued a snowfall warning for Hamilton and parts of Niagara Region on Thursday afternoon.
Canada’s weather agency said it expects a wintry mix of precipitation to fall throughout Friday evening, reducing visibility on the roads due to “rapidly accumulating snow.”
As of Friday afternoon, Hamilton and St. Catharines were under a winter storm warning with between 15 and 25 centimetres of snow expected in Hamilton by Saturday.
Hamilton’s manager of roadway maintenance is preparing for the worst, anticipating 25 to 35 centimeters of snowfall overnight.
Peter Sniuolis says the anticipation of heavy snow prompted city crews to send a brine truck out over the past week to prevent snow and ice from adhering to roadways.
A larger contingent of the same type of vehicles were dispatched Friday afternoon.
“With how heavy it’s going to be, we’re going to be on our main roads probably until early hours in the morning,” Sniuolis told Global News.
“Once that snow does taper off, I believe somewhere around two or 3 a.m. we’ll start shifting more to arterial roads and eventually, as the storm progresses, make our way down into residential.”
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He says cycling lanes will be completed at the same time as priority roads.
City-owned sidewalks will be completed 24 hours after the end of the snow event.
Property owners and residential occupants concerned about their snow-clearing responsibilities can learn more from the city’s website.
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