What’s white and rhymes with “go”? That’s right, snow. The forecast shows it’s coming soon, and City of Kelowna snow crews are ready.
“We’ve finished switching equipment over for the winter, have more than 20,000 tons of sand on hand for the season and a new snow blower is ready for its very first run which is a game-changer for our operations,” said Roadways Operations Manager Andrew Schwerdtfeger. “Our outgoing unit was more than 30 years old, and it couldn’t keep up with the demands of the job last year. The new one can fill 500 trucks per hour. It will be instrumental in helping remove snow that starts to accumulate in areas where we don’t have sufficient snow storage.”
Crews are dispatched as soon as the snow falls. Kelowna’s snow crews work around the clock when the snow flies – plowing, sanding, de-icing and treating roads.
When it comes to snow clearing, first priority goes to high traffic roads like Gordon Drive, then collector roads like Richter Street or others with bus routes, school zones, town centres and emergency vehicle stations. Learn more about road clearing priorities including your road’s priority status at kelowna.ca/snow.
Everyone has a role when it comes to winter snow. These are some things you can do to make the season more manageable for everyone:
For more information about snow removal and priority routes or the Snow Angels program, please visit kelowna.ca/snow.