Snow and Ice Control Review

April 2019

Frank Blues

The AssignmentA high level review of:1. Winter Operations Planning

2. Delivery of Winter Services (Service Levels and a review of the Snow and Ice Control   Council Procedure)

3. Snow and Ice Control Policy ‐Proposed

4. Winter Operations Technology and Winter Services Reporting

5. Municipal Winter Organizational Structures

6. Risk‐based Winter Operations Budgeting

7. Comparison to other cities

2April 2019

Winter Operations PlanningThe Coordination of Winter  Operations activities in Saint John, NB includes the following: 

• The Winter Management Plan for Streets and Sidewalks (the Plan) shall be updated by October 31st of each year;  

• Training sessions on the Plan for all Municipal Operations staff by the end of November each year;  

• Full equipment readiness inspection by the end of November each year;   

• Winter operations mode into effect on the second Sunday of November; 

• Etc.

Each section in the plan generally ends with a list of assigned responsibilities and the associated metrics.

3April 2019

Snow and Ice Control Services

The City’s Council Procedure onSnow and Ice Control has been inplace in one form or another forover 30 years but never overhauled.

It is a mix of Policy, Service Levelsand Operational Procedures

The proposed approach separatesthese issues into:

• Policy – to provide Councilexpectations and guidance

• Service Levels – to improveclarity and integrate priorities

It also introduces service levels forIce Control and Requests for Service

Priority Description MinimumMetrics Timelines

1

Arterial Roads and CurbAdjacent Sidewalks

Downtown Central BusinessDistrict roads, Lanes andSidewalks

Major Facility Entrances,Pedestrian Surfaces and dailyparking areas.

City Off‐Street Parking.

Whenaccumulatedsnowfallreaches75mm

Max 25mmcompactsnow

Completewithin 48hours afterthe end of asnow event

2

Collector Roads and CurbAdjacent Sidewalks

Priority Hills Commercial and Industrial

Roads and Sidewalks Transit Bus Routes that are

not in Priority 1

4April 2019

Snow and Ice Control Services – Contd.

Key changes include:

• Sidewalks prioritized to match the adjacent street. Metrics modified and timelines added.

• Facilities designated as Major or Minor to clarify priority setting and integrate with roads. Bare pavement requirement removed.

• Hospital District – lower priority to 3 and leave parking restrictions in place for clearing at night.

• Re‐introduce Collector roads at priority 2

• Re‐introduction of a Heavy Snowfall Declaration  XXX mm?

Priority Description MinimumMetrics Timelines

3

Residential Roads, Lanes andCurb Adjacent Sidewalks

(Lanes may be closed ifimpractical to plow)

Minor Facility entrances,pedestrian surfaces andparking areas

Whenaccumulatedsnowfallreaches120mm

Max 25mmcompactsnow

Completewithin 72hours afterthecompletionof Priority 2areas

4

Major Park Pathways, Trailsand Parking Lots

Event Parking Areas (Unless amajor event is imminent thenraise priority to clear beforethe event)

Whenaccumulatedsnowfallreaches120mm

Max 25mmcompactsnow

As resourcesallow

5April 2019

Ice Control Service Levels ‐ NewDescription Minimum Metrics Timelines

Anti‐Icing (Liquid Salt)may be applied to Priority 1 road andparking lot surfaces

Up to 24 hours in advance of a forecastsnow event with a 60% or greaterprobability of occurring and when surfacetemperatures are warmer than minus 20Celsius

Selectively used up to 24hours in advance of aPriority 1 snowfall event

Pre‐Wetting (Liquid Salt) Applied to 100% of abrasives and Road Saltprior to application to road and pedestriansurfaces

In use any time abrasivesor road salt are applied

Road Salt (Rock Salt) Immediately following snow removal frompriority 1 and 2 areas when surfacetemperatures are warmer than minus 7Celsius.

Selectively used to meltsnow and ice

Abrasives Winter Crush Winter Sand

Normally applied to road intersections,stops, hills and bends and pedestriansurfaces in priority 1, 2 and 4 areas whenice forms.

May be applied to Priority 3 Areas whenconditions merit.

Selectively used toimprove traction on roadsand pedestrian surfaces

6April 2019

Requests for Winter Services ‐ New Description

(Illustrative Examples) MetricsTimelines for Response

Traffic and Pedestrian Safety No. of Requests for Service XXX hours

Property Damage No. of Requests for Service XXX hours

Priority 1 snow related Activity No. of Requests for Service XXX hours

Priority 2 snow related activity No. of Requests for Service XXX hours

Priority 3 snow related activity No. of Requests for Service XXX hours

Priority 4 snow related activity No. of Requests for Service XXX hours

Ice Control non‐safety relatedactivity

No. of Requests for Service XXX hours

7April 2019

Snow and Ice Control Policy ‐ Proposed

The Community expects the City to deliver a timely, measured and prioritized response to winter weather conditions to support the mobility of people and goods across the community.

The following actions will help guide the City in the development, implementation, maintenance, review and reporting of its snow and ice control plans and support systems:

8April 2019

Snow and Ice Control Policy – Contd.

• Define the levels of snow and ice control services to be delivered using best management practices in support of Council’s Mission. 

• Identify the optimum mix of internal/external resources to deliver the desired services.

• Plan financially for the defined levels of service and the risk of costs exceeding the annual budget due to the variable nature of winter.

• Identify and address the effects of climate change. 

• Implement equipment training and succession planning to ensure that City operations are optimized and that support staff are trained and available when required.

• Develop a communication plan for the timely release of winter services information and service performance reporting in advance of and during the winter season.

9April 2019

Winter Operations Technology and Winter Services ReportingSpringfield MA uses Cityworks work management system for real‐time reporting:Information supplied by in‐the‐field inspectors gives an overview of the progress in each section of the City. Streets in blue are reported as plowed whereas streets in red are not plowed. Information provided by the map enables plows to be redeployed to sections of the City getting done slower. Call Centre is also able to use the map to handle calls from residents as to specific information about their street.An option to street progress may be neighbourhood progress reporting.

10April 2019

Strategic Reporting• Date Based• Shows Service Levels

• Shows Snow Events

• Start and End Dates of Priority Snow Activity

11April 2019

CanadianComparison

Cities

12April 2019

Organizational Structures for Winter Operations

• Communities surveyed had various Org. Structures –some similar to Prince George

• Consider assigning multi‐storey car parks and off‐street parking to Parks and Solid Waste

Prince George Engineering and Public Works:                 

City Manager 

Gen Manager Eng & Pub Wrks 

Dir Engineering  Dir Pub Wrks. 

Fleet 

Parks & Solid Waste 

Roads 

Engineering 

Civic Facilities 

Asset Mgmt. 

Utilities 

Administration 

Multi‐Storey  Car Parks 

Off Street Parking (Contracted) 

Civic Facilities  Parking Lots  Park Trails 

Roads  Lanes  Sidewalks 

Divisional assignment of snow clearing responsibility 

13April 2019

Snow and Ice Control – Risk Based Budgeting

1. Define the start and end of winter1. When daily Avg. temp < 00C2. All equipment ready when daily 

High temp < 00C3. Same approach for end of 

winter when temp. rising >00C

2. Define snow fall events:1. Priority 1 & 2 > 75mm2. Priority 3 & 4 > 120mm3. Heavy Snowfall > ??

3. Determine the number of priority events (single day events and consecutive‐day events) for each year over a 30‐year timeframe (climate norm)

4. Create a graph of the results, ordered from low number of events to high number of events

14April 2019

Risk Based Budgeting contd.Develop a chart of the number of priority       1 & 2 (75mm) and 3 & 4 (125mm) snowfall events for each service level for each year of the 30‐year period

5. Select the desired risk level and record the number of anticipated events

15April 2019

Establish the Annual Snow and Ice Control BudgetEstablish the daily and annual Fixed Costs of Snow and Ice ControlFixed costs are costs that are independent of output. These remain reasonably constant throughout the winter. Fixed costs may include:• Cost of staffing and equipment that is typically deployed• Cost of winter materials – sand, fracture, salt, brine, etc.

Establish the daily and annual Variable Costs for Snow Control for each of the service level events that may include:• Daily cost of responding to a Priority 1 & 2 (75mm) snowfall event for each Priority area

• Daily cost of responding to a Priority 3 & 4 (120mm) snowfall event for each Priority area

Based on the risk levels selected and the number of annual snowfall events using 30‐years of data you can estimate the fixed and variable costs to help establish a calendar year budget. 

16April 2019

Comparison With Other Communities 

• Municipal agencies in Ontario were aligned in the delivery of services due to a provincial guide; O. Reg. 239/02: MINIMUM MAINTENANCE STANDARDS FOR MUNICIPAL HIGHWAYS

• Only St John’s Newfoundland discussed service levels for civic facilities

• None of the communities reviewed has a Snow and Ice Control Policy to identify Council’s expectations 

• All reviewed communities use the road classification system approach to priority setting

• Transit routes and in some cases transit stops and shelters are considered high priorities

• Snow windrows/banks clearance times are not stipulated in any of the compared communities

• No other community clears driveways

17April 2019

Municipal Benchmarking NetworkThe Network is a partnership of 16 municipalities across Canada to:• Measure, share and compare performance statistics and operational practices.

• Assist Council, staff and citizens to understand how their municipality is performing over time and in relation to others.

Goal is to foster a culture of service excellence in municipal government.MBN Canada have identified and developed:• 670 measures• 37 service areas

Total Cost for Winter Maintenance of Roadways per one Lane km Maintained 

Not inclusive of sidewalk snow clearing and parking lots18April 2019

Recommendations1. Replace the current Council 

Procedure on Snow and Ice Control with:• A Council Policy on Snow and Ice Control 

• Tables of Minimum Service Levels for the delivery of winter services 

• Updated internal winter operational procedures arising out of the proposed changes

2. Develop a Winter Management Plan similar to that developed by the City of Saint John, New Brunswick

3. Implement Winter Services reporting at the strategic level 

4. Consider the development and implementation of Risk Based Budgeting

19April 2019

Snow and Ice Control Review

Thank you

QUESTIONS??

20April 2019