Norwalk Says Its Ready for Snow

While most of us were boiling in the summer sun, Norwalk was already thinking snow.

"We started prepping in August," said Harold F. Alvord, director of the city . He said such work involves inspecting the hydraulic lines in the fleet of plows, to make sure they can be manipulated properly in all directions to do their work. The work was accomplished without overtime, and in September the city stocked an initial supply of salt in its South Smith Street shed.

Norwalk has 25 snow-clearing routes, and at any time 25 to 30 trucks are in service, Alvord said, and there is one supervisor for about eight routes.

In recent years, snow removal has become more efficient, Alvord said. The core of Norwalk's effort falls on 16 Sterling L8500 trucks that are now but six years old. The age of the vehicles mean they are in good condition, but what may be more significant is that the plows can thoroughly be manipulated from inside the cab, without requiring a second crew member to be on hand who would keep hopping outside to make adjustments to the plow position.

However, the city supplements them with other trucks in the fleet, dating back to the mid-1990s, especially on some of the city's narrower streets.

In order to avoid large-scale vehicle breakdowns, Alvord said the city has abandoned its past policy of bulk purchase for trucks, moving to a rotating schedule under which it purchases several trucks a year. "We're trying to standardize our fleet, Alvord said. The goal is "not to keep a vehicle more than 10 years."

Not an easy job

Sleet, snow and freezing rain signals the return of the plow brigades for area public works departments. 

"Ice storms are really the only ones that scare us," said Joe Lametta, Weston's director of public works.

Lametta, who has been the public works director for 25 years, has deep respect for his men who keep 80 miles of roads clear during the winter months.

"Plowing is hard work," he said. "People don't realize it, but you're out alone in a truck, sometimes in snow-blind conditions. I don't know how these guys do it."

But do it they will, again and again, week after week.

It's that time, when New England steels itself against wintry weather with shovels, salt and sand. And once again homeowners and town plows seem locked in a perennial struggle over snow piles that linger at the ends of driveways. 

"Our plows turn only one way," Peter Hill, director of Ridgefield's public works, said. "Some people feel they have the right to push the snow back on to the street. That's a no-no."

To help melt potential liabilities, many towns post snow removal policies online to better inform residents of the dos and don'ts.

To Treat or Not to Treat

Ridgefield's Department of Public Works cares for 190 miles of road, including private ones. Unlike many towns, Ridgefield doesn't pre-treat roads when meteorologists call snow.

If storms begin during work hours — 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. — public works dispatches the trucks. Otherwise, the police department alerts public works, which then sends out the plows. 

"A lot of towns pre-treat, but it turns out the weatherman is wrong a lot. And that costs a lot of money," Hill said. 

Ridgefield's Finance Department sets the snow budget. About $145,000 is allocated each year. If public works doesn't use it, it goes back into the general fund, Hill said. It's usually spent.

Ideally, Norwalk would also be able to pre-treat its roads for an approaching storm. "The state has used the brine solution with great success," Alvord said, explaining that the process can quickly melt the first 1/4 inch or so. But tight budget conditions mean the department didn't get the $120,000 it requested. Still, he said, the city will be testing a unit on some of its most challenging hills such as Sunset Hill Avenue, Roosevelt Street, and Nelson Avenue.

The Cost of Clearing

Clearing snow isn't cheap. In Fairfield, it costs up to $5,000 per hour to treat and plow the municipality's 275 miles of streets, according to the town's public works department.

Unlike Norwalk and Ridgefield, the Fairfield Department of Public Works pre-treats roads depending on the forecast. If the pattern of cold continues,  trucks will lay down a liquid treatment Friday and that will have a residual effect for several weeks, said Scott Bartlett, superintendent of Fairfield's highway department.

Bartlett explained he has multiple recipes from which to choose when it comes to pre-treating roads. He can do liquid only, salt only, or several combinations of the two. It all depends on the weather. 

To avoid extra work, he implores residents to wait until crews finish their final street cleanup before venturing out with shovels and snow blowers.

Snow pushed from driveways into the streets can block already cleared roads. It can refreeze and turn to ice mounds, causing vehicles to skid, spin and crash. Bartlett urges residents to push snow to the sides of their driveways. 

"It's more than a pet peeve. It's truly a liability," Bartlett said. "We live it, too; we have to deal with it when we go home."

Downed mail boxes are sometimes a snow plow casualty. Just don't look to the public works departments for help. 

In Fairfield, the town repairs and replaces only those mail boxes actually struck by plow blade.

"Usually a paint mark or truck tire tracks supply evidence of a mailbox strike," according to the town website. "Mailboxes and supporting posts must be installed to withstand the rigors of snow removal, including the force of snow pushed from the street onto the roadside."

In Darien, Robert Steeger, director of public works said the town spends about $250,000 on snow removal, not including any equipment costs. In a bad year the cost can double.

In Wilton, Public Works Director Tom Thurkettle oversees snow and ice control. And, like other departments in the region, it removes accumulated sand and salt at winter's end. 

When it Comes to Snow Removal, Patience is a Virtue

Countywide complaints are as common as erroneous weather reports. The biggest complaint is that someone's road hasn't been cleared quickly.

Normally it takes four passes to truly clear a road, Hill said.  To open a road, trucks first plow the center. They don't clean up until the storm ends. 

"People get impatient," Ridgefield's Hill said.

That's something to which the New Canaan Highway Department can relate. It too encourages people to push snow to the right of the driveway so town plow trucks push less snow back into the driveways as they pass.

"Do not throw or leave snow on the roadway when clearing your property; it is in violation of state and local codes by causing a hazardous road conditions," according to the website.

And while "the safety and well-being of the citizens is a primary concern…the aesthetics of the town are of utmost importance," according to the town website.

Above all, town departments urge patience. 

"Repeatedly calling the departments won't get the crews out any faster," Bartlett said.