Snow removal to begin across Toronto, cleanup could take days to complete

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Crews will need several days to cleanup after recent snowstorm

‘Bitterly cold’: Extreme cold warnings issued in parts of southern Ontario

Dump trucks will soon be hitting residential streets across Toronto to haul out the mountains of snow that have accumulated following a record-breaking snowstorm in the city on Sunday.

Mayor Olivia Chow said crews have already begun removing snow from hospital sites and trucks will prioritize TTC stops first.

Speaking to reporters at a news conference on Tuesday, City Manager Paul Johnson said snow removal operations will begin citywide starting Wednesday.

FULL FORECAST: For a look at the hour-by-hour forecast, including snowfall totals, click here

IN PICTURES: Toronto hit with nearly 60 cm of snow

He said removal will be a “large task” given that the two winter storms this month alone have resulted in about 90 centimetres of snowfall in some areas. Johnson added that this is significantly more snow than the city saw during the three consecutive snowstorms that brought Toronto to a standstill last February.

“It is definitely bigger than what we experienced last February,” he said.

“I don’t know where the season is going. I keep asking mother nature to give us a bit of a break for a while but I’ll wait back for that phone call.”

The city, Johnson said, has now secured a sixth site for snow storage, and they have more melters available this year to increase capacity at the storage locations.

He said staff will notify residents in advance when snow removal is set to begin on their street.

“We will make people aware. We actually go door-to-door, knocking when we come to do the residential snow removal. So that will help people understand what is coming next,” Johnson said.

‘Clear that car off’

He encouraged people to be proactive in anticipation of trucks coming to remove snow.

“Maybe clear that car off because at some point we are going to need those cars to move,” he said.

“If it is still under a pile of snow, it might be time to start to think about how you dig that out. Somebody told me it took them five hours to dig their car out… you might want to think about when that happens.”

He added that winter maintenance teams will continue to try to widen pathways along sidewalks to make it easier for people with mobility issues to get around.

“We are trying to clear as much space as possible on those sidewalks for people to traverse,” he said.

“The good news is we are further ahead this year in terms of overall sidewalk clearing… The number that are unplowed entirely is much, much lower. In fact, there are very few in that case.”

Johnson reminded drivers that parking along snow routes is still prohibited.

“I would ask the public to adhere to that,” he said. “There is no backing off the enforcement.”