Winter Maintenance

Snow and Ice Control

Our snow clearing operations follow the Snow and Ice Control Policy and Morinville's new Snow and Ice Control Administrative Directive. We remove snow from all roads including 100 Avenue (Highway 642), laneways, sidewalks adjacent to Town-owned property, trails, and parking lots.

Please submit any concerns or questions you may have regarding snow clearing in your neighbourhood via: Report a Concern

Our roads team will be made aware of your concern.

All concerns are documented and reviewed during policy review.

When is Snow Removal Actioned?
Snow Fall or Condition	Action Taken if a second snowfall occurs prior to the initial snow clearing operations, the target time for completion will reset in order for our crews to return to the higher priority areas.	Target for Completion
Accumulations between 0 to 5 cm and/or during icy road conditions	Sanding of key intersections and removal of hazardous drifts on Priority 1 - Main Roads	8 hours
Accumulations between 5 to 10 cm	Priority 1 – Main Roads and Priority 2 - Arterial Roads, emergency routes (RCMP, Fire Station, EMS) will be plowed and Town facility parking lots	24 hours
Accumulations between 10 to 15 cm	Priority 3 – Neighbourhood Collector Roads will be cleared	72 hours
Accumulations over 15 cm	Priority 4 – Residential Streets / Lanes removal will begin	5 days (1 zone per day)
Freezing Rain Event	Sanding of key intersection within approximately 30 m of the intersection will occur	8 hours

Accumulations mentioned above refer to the compacted snow depth on roadways.

Snow Depth Measurement

We take the average of three measurements across the driving surface at several locations in each Zone, these measurements let us know if a Priority Level has been triggered for snow clearing operations. Please refer to the table below for the most up to date measurement.

Date	Average Measurement
February 24th, 2023	5 cm
March 20th, 2023	6 cm

Priority 4 - Residential Streets and Laneways Process

Snow removal in residential areas is completed after higher priority areas are completed. Snow clearing commences throughout the five different zones on a rotational basis. Please refer to the table below to find out which Zone the last snow event began in and which zone the next event will begin with.

Priority 4: Residential Streets and Laneway Snow Clearing Rotation
Date of Snow event	Residential snow removal began in:	Next snow event, residential snow removal will begin in:
Last snow removal event: January 26, 2022	Zone A	Zone B
Next snow event	Zone B	Zone C

Resource documents

What can you do to help

For safe and efficient snow removal, please support crews and equipment by moving vehicles and other obstructions such as, gutter ramps, extension cords, and basketball nets. Be aware when encountering snow removal equipment. Slow down and follow from a safe distance. Only pass when the equipment is at a standstill and it is safe to do so.

Parking bans

Please help make snow removal easier by moving your vehicles off the street during parking bans and neighbourhood snow removal events.

No Parking signs will be placed in the specified area at least 24 hours before snow clearing operations take place.
Enforcement Services will ticket and tow any vehicles found parked on a street that a no parking sign is placed.
Residents must move their vehicles off any street with a no parking sign no later than 6:00 am on the day listed until snow removal has been completed. We encourage residents to move their vehicles the night before to ensure roads are clear for snow removal.
If your vehicle is towed, the registered owner can contact Enforcement Services at 780-939-7831 to find where to retrieve it.

Sidewalk and trail maintenance

We clear snow from all sidewalks adjacent to Town-owned property and the trail system.

Crews monitor the condition of sidewalks and trails daily.
Ice control is provided on an ongoing basis during freeze/thaw cycles, freezing rain, or any event that may be dangerous to pedestrians.

Homeowner responsibility

Prevention of snow or ice buildup on sidewalks adjacent to your property is your responsibility.

You must clear snow and ice from all sidewalks bordering your property.
Clear snow to bare surface within 72-hours of the snow event.
If you own a rental property, are traveling, or working out of town, you are still responsible to arrange for the clearing of your sidewalks after each snowfall.
Avoid placing snow removed from your sidewalk onto the road.
For icy conditions you can spread sand on the sidewalk. A wooden box containing free sand is located outside the fenced area at the Public Works Yard at 10310 107 Street. You must bring your own pail and shovel.

Shovelling snow into the street contributes to unsafe driving conditions and leads to an overall cost increase to road maintenance.

Enforcement Services will ticket residents found shovelling snow from driveways or sidewalks onto the road.

Learn more from our Traffic Safety Bylaw.

If you have mobility or health issues and are unable to clear you sidewalk, assistance may be available through the Seniors Home Support Program.

Snow windrows

Where possible, snow will be pushed the side of the roads that does not have a sidewalk, or both sides of the road if safe to do so.

Snow will be removed where no space is available, where traffic safety is impacted, or at the discretion of the General Manager of Community and Infrastructure Services and Community Safety or designate.

Garbage collection during snow clearing events

Should snow clearing occur on the same day as curbside waste collection, residents should place their carts and blue bags in the center of their driveway (30 cm or 1 foot from the end). During snow clearing carts cannot be on the road, sidewalk or in the gutter.

Snow Removal Carts

Driveway gutter ramps

If your driveway gutter ramp is left in place, costs to repair damage to Town equipment will be your responsibility.

From November 1 to March 31, remove all gutter ramps accessing your driveway.
The Town will not be liable for damaged or missing ramps.

Flags on private property

Flags are placed on private property by operators to ensure visibility of snow covered objects during snow clearing events.

Residents will receive a communication on their door if a flag has been placed on their property.
Please leave the flag(s) in place on your property for the entirety of the winter season to limit potential damage.

Free sand

To assist in injury prevention from slippery sidewalks, sand is available to residents at no cost.

A wooden box containing sand is located outside the fenced area at the Public Works Yard at 10310 107 Street.
You must bring your own pail and shovel.
This sand is not intended for commercial use.

Snow around fire hydrants

We would like to remind residents when clearing snow to keep all fire hydrants accessible.

If there is a hydrant near your home, please help us out in clearing an access path. A minimum clearance of 1 m is required for emergency access.
If there is a location where a hydrant is not accessible, please contact Infrastructure Services at 780-939-2590.

Snow storage

The Town owned snow dump typically operates Monday to Friday, 7:30 am to 2:00 pm, excluding holidays.

Contractors may use the snow dump for snow collected from properties within the Town of Morinville.

All contractors must submit to Infrastructure Services:

A valid business licence
Proof of $2 million liability insurance
A $500 damage deposit; if no damage is incurred during the season the deposit will be returned
A letter confirming you are hauling snow for a Morinville business or condominium
A signed Snow Disposal Agreement - please call our Infrastructure Services office at 780-939-2590 to obtain your copy.

Fees will be charged for contracted use of the site - please see the Snow Disposal Agreement.

A site orientation is provided by Infrastructure Services staff after all requirements have been met.

Snow storage location: 2 km east of Morinville on Secondary Highway 642 and south on Range Road 251.

Availability of the snow dump for contractors is conditional on available capacity within the facility and other emergent operational conditions.

Contractor opportunities

We are looking for contractors to haul snow for our upcoming snow season, please complete the below Snow Haul Contractor Package and Agreement. Submissions must be sent to Infrastructure Services on or before September 22nd at 4:00 p.m.

2023/2024 Snow Haul Contractor Package and Agreement