City of Lethbridge ready to handle weekend snowfall

Sep 27, 2019 | 1:16 PM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – The city could see its first snowfall of the season this weekend.

Environment Canada issued a winter storm watch on Thursday, saying that parts of southwestern Alberta could get between 15-30 cm of snow between Friday night and Monday morning.

Transportation Operations Manager Adam Campbell says they have been working since August to ensure all of their equipment is ready for whatever this fall and winter brings.

“We are mostly ready to go in terms of all our equipment, all our staff. I don’t think this weekend has anything it can throw at us that we can’t handle.”

When everything is ready to go in mid-October, the city will have 12 plows, three loaders, two graders, and two snow blowers. They have a total of 25 permanent staff and 10-15 part-time workers.

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For this weekend, Campbell says they should have six-to-eight plows hitting the streets, most of which are equipped with sanders, that will be handled by six-to-eight employees.

The City of Lethbridge conducts snow removal on a priority basis.

In the top priority are the major transportation routes, including Whoop-Up Drive, Mayor Magrath Drive, University Drive, Metis Trail, and Scenic Drive. Other examples of priority roads include city and school bus routes and access to Chinook Regional Hospital.

Once those are cleared, officials will work to assess the situation and determine which of the second priority routes should be covered next.

For more information on snow removal in Lethbridge, you can go to the city’s website here.

See below: A demonstration of snowplow equipment working together.

by David Opinko