'More prepared than ever': Toronto outlines $109M winter weather plan

A cyclict hops off his bike to get out of the way of a snow plow while making his way past dozens of stranded streetcars during a severe winter storm in Toronto on Monday January 17, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn

The City of Toronto will be deploying salt trucks as soon as snow starts sticking to the ground this winter season, rather than waiting for snow to accumulate in previous years.

The new move is part of the city’s winter weather readiness plan which also includes new snow response technology and replenished snow clearing equipment including salt supplies to clear roads, sidewalks, bicycle lanes and respond to watermain breaks.

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The city outlined the plan in a news conference Thursday morning, two days after the city’s first significant snowfall of the season.

“We put aside in the budget approximately $109.5 million in the proposed 2023 winter operations budget in order to ensure that our roads and sidewalks are clear and safe. We're tracking the weather and as we've seen this week, personnel are ready to go at a moment's notice to prepare our streets for the snow that is to come,” Mayor John Tory said at the city’s Wellington Works Yard.

The city’s winter plan prioritizes safety and mobility, particularly for residents, and emergency and transit vehicles.

The city says more than 1,500 workers are on standby and over 1,400 pieces of equipment are ready to clean up snow and ice.

Salting is the city’s first step when snow begins to fall, and then plowing begins when the snow is five centimetres deep on expressways, five centimetres deep on major roads and transit routes, and eight centimetres deep on residential streets.

Tory says the city has negotiated a new set of seven-year winter contracts this year which will provide more flexible and accountable snow clearing and salting services.

“In previous years, the city only began operations on the smaller local roads after five to eight centimeters of accumulation. But these new contracts in place this year now will see salt trucks dispatched as soon as the snow starts sticking to the ground, and that was something that happened in many areas of the city just in the last number of days,” Tory said.

John Tory provides an update on the city's upcoming snow removal efforts on Nov. 17, 2022.

The city says crews work to salt and plow major roads and expressways within four to six hours, and salt and plow local roads within eight hours and 14 hours, respectively.

“We do ask that the residents hold off for approximately 14/16 hours by the time we deploy our vehicles. At that point they can certainly call 311 and request a service request for any issue that they may see that needs attention,” Transportation Operations and Maintenance Director Vincent Sferrazza said.

The new contracts include new GPS power to track equipment and enhanced weather predicting technology. The new deals also allow the city to start clearing public sidewalks when snow accumulation reaches two centimetres.

“Before snow reaches two centimeters, we would ask that people continue to be…good neighbors and help keep sidewalks and pathways clear for your friends and families but also for your neighbors and especially those who might have a little more of a challenge getting around,” Tory said.

A car remains behind a snowbank in downtown Toronto as a heavy snowfall affects the greater Toronto area on Monday January 17, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

To track plowing efforts around the city, residents can use the city’s salt truck and snow plow tracker, PlowTO, which will be launched in December.

Toronto’s winter plan also includes details on maintaining and monitoring underground infrastructure.

Cold weather and rapid swings in temperature can cause an increase in watermain breaks.

Tory says staff are ready to respond to service calls to prevent pipes from freezing.

“Every year, the city upgrades hundreds of kilometres of watermains, some more than a century old. I know that the replacement of these antique watermains causes traffic disruption but it is work that cannot be postponed, as happened over many decades in the past,” he said.

The city has been investing $150 million annually to improve the watermain distribution system, which includes roughly 30 to 40 kilometres of watermain pipes being replaced every year and the rehabilitation of an additional 100 to 130 kilometres of water pipes.

The city’s winter plan comes after a major winter storm last January when 55 cm of snow fell on the city in a span of 15 hours. According to the city, 180,000 tonnes of snow were removed from streets, sidewalks, and bicycle paths at a cost of more than $17 million.

“The staff have assured me in this briefing that resulted from all of their work and reflection and an examination of what happened then, and generally with regard to winter snowfalls, that they are more prepared than ever for winter weather,” Tory said.

More information about the city’s salt management and snow clearing operations can be found on its website.

A woman makes her way along a street in downtown Toronto as a heavy snowfall affects the greater Toronto area on Monday January 17, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young