Latest snow parking ban brings a flurry of tickets
Snow clearing crews were back on the streets on Sunday as this winter’s third snow route parking ban kicked in following heavy snowfall over the weekend.
The ban can last up to 72 hours, or until it is lifted by the city. It requires Calgarians to ensure their vehicles aren’t parked along the city’s designated snow routes, marked throughout the city by blue signs with a white snowflake, while city crews focus their efforts on those roads.
Snow routes are located on major roadways, collector roads and most bus routes. Parking bans typically begin 24 hours after a snowfall has ended, once crews are done clearing Calgary’s major thoroughfares — Priority 1 routes that handle the city’s largest traffic volumes.
The Calgary Parking Authority issued 224 tickets by 4 p.m. Sunday for violations of the ban.
About 25 to 30 centimetres of snow fell throughout parts of Calgary during the latest snowstorm that lasted from Thursday night to Saturday morning, according to Environment Canada. Some pockets of downtown got between 15 and 18 centimetres.
The snowfall record for March 3 is 15.2 centimetres, set in 1924.
Those hoping for a reprieve from cold temperatures and snowfall are in luck for the next week. Temperatures for the next five days should hover around -4 C, and are expected to be even warmer toward the weekend.
“It shouldn’t get too slushy out there until late this week, and then we have a system moving into B.C. and that’s going to push in a whole bunch of warm air into Alberta, so next weekend should be well above zero. It should be pretty warm,” said Environment Canada meteorologist Alysa Pederson. “Based off of climatology, we’re not done with winter yet, but the next week looks pretty good.”
Two separate snow route parking bans were called by the city in February, resulting in nearly 5,000 tickets combined that the Calgary Parking Authority issued for violations. Just one such ban was called last year.
The fine for parking on a snow route during the ban is $75. The ticket will cost Calgarians $50 if the ticket is paid within 30 days, and the fine drops to $40 if paid within 10 days.
Vehicles can still park in the ParkPlus zones during the day from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. while the ban is in place.
Any snowfall of two centimetres or more activates the city’s sevenday snow-clearing plan. Within the first 24 hours, the city clears Priority 1 roads — those that see about 20,000 vehicles per day, such as Glenmore, Sarcee and Macleod trails.
In the first 48 hours, crews also clear Priority 2 roads, which include key bus routes such as Kensington Road and Acadia Drive, and are the focus of the parking ban.
The city focuses on ramps, residential intersections and playgrounds on Day 3 of the seven-day plan, while knocking down ruts and laying traction material in residential neighbourhoods in the remaining days. A fresh snowfall could interrupt the seven-day cycle, forcing the city to start from scratch.
But the heavy snowfall this winter has raised concerns about whether the city is doing enough to clear the roads.
In 2018, the city has already spent $17 million in two months on snow and ice control, according to Coun. Jeromy Farkas. Its annual snow-clearing budget is about $38 million.
Farkas said Sunday he would be proposing an urgent one-time fund for snow clearing to boost the city’s efforts. That money would primarily be spent for additional work on crosswalks and sidewalks.
“It’s really become clear that waiting for a chinook is no longer a viable strategy, especially for many Calgarians living with disabilities and accessibility issues,” he said, adding that he was speaking with city staff to determine how much funding would be needed for this proposal.
In January, Coun. Druh Farrell tabled a motion asking city administration to look at ways to make sidewalks and other walking paths safer and more accessible in relation to the city’s snow and ice control policies.
Calgary ’s sidewalk-clearing budget is $2.5 million, compared with $8.7 million in slightly smaller Ottawa.
Coun. Ward Sutherland said the city has done well given this year’s challenges, having already called in extra crews this winter to help deal with the added volume.
“To a lot of people it doesn’t seem like that but ... three winters ago we had a storm where it was less snow than this and people were locked into their neighbourhoods for three to five days,” he said. “The snow removal, compared with this time when we actually have more snow than last time, they ’ve done a really good job. It’s just that people are getting tired of it and their expectations are quite high.
“We didn’t have to call in the army like Toronto did.”