City of Ottawa urges people to ‘avoid all travel,’ issues Sunday parking ban ahead of storm

Just as Ottawa digs out from Thursday’s snow storm, the city is getting hit by another dump of snow. CTV’s Natalie van Rooy reports.

The City of Ottawa is urging residents to be patient and to avoid all travel around the city as another major winter storm is set to blanket the city on Family Day weekend.

Environment Canada has issued a winter storm warning for Ottawa, calling for 5 to 10 cm of snow on Saturday and up to 30 cm of snow on Sunday. It comes only days after 32 cm of snow buried Ottawa on Wednesday night and Thursday, the largest snowfall in three years.

A significant weather event remains in effect until further notice, the city says.

An extended winter parking ban will be in effect from 10 a.m. Sunday until further notice. The city says the extension of the standard parking ban is required to support winter maintenance operations as crews continue to clear roads from the last storm.

During a winter weather parking ban, only vehicles with a residential parking permit are allowed to park on city streets. The city is encouraging those with parking permits to find alternative parking during the ban to prevent vehicles from being snowed in.

“This being the second major winter storm within five days, it will be challenging for our operations. All resources will be deployed,” said Jake Gravelle, area manager for urban, roads and parking services for the City of Ottawa in a news release.

The city says travel will be hazardous and should be avoided. Crews continue to cleanup roads and sidewalks from the last storm.

“There simply wasn’t enough time to get to it all ahead of this incoming snowstorm. As the snow accumulates, there will be significant challenges for our operators to clear and treat the transportation network, and we know operations will be slow going,” Gravelle says.

“It is extremely important to be patient and understand that it will be challenging for everyone to get around the city during this event and beyond.”

Gravelle adds that snow clearing operations will take longer than usual but crews will be working “nonstop” for several days through the storm.

“This is not your typical storm, and we anticipate that multiple passes will be required to clear and treat conditions on the transportation network. Given the snowfall rate, once a plow has passed, it will very quickly look like it hasn’t been there, but rest assured, crews are out in full force,” the release says.

Conditions are expected to improve by Monday afternoon.

The city says the following park and ride locations are open for parking during a winter weather parking ban:

• Riverview (at Earl Armstrong)
• Innovation (at Innovation Drive)
• Chapel Hill
• Nepean Woods (at Strandherd Drive)
• Greenboro
• Leitrim
• Eagleson (west lot)

Other temporary parking locations during a winter weather parking ban:

• Richelieu Vanier Community Centre – 300 des Peres-Blancs Avenue
• Louis Kemp Arena – 200 Glen Park Drive
• W. Erskine Johnson Arena – 3832 Carp Road
• Cardelrec Recreation Complex Golbourn – 1500 Shea Road
• Ron Kolbus Lakeside Centre – 102 Greenview Avenue
• Pinecrest Recreation Complex – 2250 Torquay Avenue
• Nepean Sportsplex – 1701 Woodroffe Avenue
• Greenboro Library – 363 Lorry Greenberg Drive
• Earl Armstrong Arena – 2020 Ogilvie Road
• Dr John Hopps Park – 300 Den Haag Drive
• Sunnyside Library – 1049 Bank Street
• Jim Durrell Recreation Complex – 1265 Walkley Road
• Osgoode Community Centre and Stuart Holmes Arena – 5660 Osgoode Main Street
• Manotick Library – 5499 South River Drive
• Fred Barrett Arena – 3280 Leitrim Road
• Hazeldean Library – 50 Castlefrank Road
• Hunt Club-Riverside Park Community Centre – 3320 Paul Anka Drive
• Sandy Hill Arena – 60 Mann Avenue
• Ruth E. Dickinson Library – 100 Malvern Drive
• Tony Graham Recreation Complex – 100 Charlie Rogers Place
• Minto Recreation Complex – 3500 Cambrian Road
• Ray Friel Recreation Complex – 1585 Tenth Line Road
• Tom Brown Arena – 141 Bayview Station Road
• Strathcona Park – 25 Range Road
• Jules Morin Park – 400 Clarence Street
• Centrepointe Park – 260 Centrepointe Drive