Snow and ice clearing update

News Release

It’s been 24 hours since snowfall ended, and City crews have made significant progress clearing Kelowna’s roadways.

There are 23 units currently clearing and sanding roadways in the city. Efforts are focused on hillside and Priority Three routes, but crews are returning to Priority One and Priority Two routes for sanding as needed. Priority One roads are large arterials like Gordon Drive and Rutland Road, Priority Two routes include collector roads with steep hills, sharp curves, school zones, emergency vehicle stations and transit routes, and Priority Three routes are local and residential roads. We expect to complete residential road clearing by Thursday afternoon.

“We’ve spread 1,500 metric tonnes of sand in the last 36 hours,” says Roadways Operations Manager Andrew Schwerdtfeger. “As residential snow clearing continues, we need to regularly return to the busier roadways to sand them as vehicle traffic compresses the snow and polishes it so it becomes slippery.”

Other ongoing snow and ice control efforts include:

• 5 sidewalk units clearing walkways surrounding City property and along arterial routes.
• A team of 14 people clearing Transit stops.
• 7 contracted trucks hauling sand to City facilities.

City crews have begun collecting snow in the middle of roads in Kelowna’s urban centres to ensure there is room in parking and curbside areas ahead of more snow forecast for Thursday and Friday. City crews are scheduled to work 24/7 through the holidays in anticipation of this additional snowfall.

Twenty-four hours have passed since a snow advisory was declared in Kelowna and parking bans are active in snow route areas, including Academy Way, Black Mountain, Clifton/Magic Estates/Wilden, Dilworth Mountain, Kirschner Mountain, McKinley Beach and areas in the South Mission, including The Ponds. 

For more information about snow removal and priority routes, please visit kelowna.ca/snow.