Snow removal after our rare storms!
 

SNOW CLEARING EFFORTS LAMBASTED BY COUNCILLOR
From Hamilton Spectator

What a stooge!

No one can control the weather nor accurately predict it. Seriously I bought a good snow blower and have only had to use it maybe 6 times in the last 3 yrs.

I do my driveway, the CITY sidewalks for my block both sides of the street. We have older neighbors and we help out.

We have done quite well here in Hamilton all things considered, imagine the counties that seldom get snow like England and poof a blizzard.

This is Canada, get snow tires not all season radials or if you are that upset get a 4x4.
Battalions of workers getting paid don't sit in a warehouse stretching on stand-by. We contract out as a full size 5 ton dunp truck with a blade and salter don't come cheap. Especially for 2-4 storms a season (Dec-Apr).
Yes there are some co-ordination issues or contracts handed out to companies that can't meet our needs.
If you think our snow is bad try the Praires or Northern Ontario. Not add -40 temperatures.
So if it is so bad, realize you live in Canada and grab a shovel and meet your neighbors.
Be thankful you don't live in New Jersey, Haiti or Thailand. Talk about severe weather.

Oh I don't know, I've heard Port-au-Prince is beautiful this time of year.

Canadians love to complain. We have a right to complain (about everything) and we exercise that right ad nauseum. That's what it is to be a Canuck.

Two perennial forms of service/filler journalism are weather and responses to weather.

Storm of complaints causes review of snowplowing response
(Hamilton Spectator, Carmela Fragomeni, Jan 3, 2012)

A storm of complaints about uncleared streets, after Hamilton was hit with up to 15 centimetres of snow on Boxing Day, has city hall staff plugging away on a review of plowing operations.

The review of the cleanup of Hamilton’s first major storm since 2011 centres mainly on the city’s multiple private contractors, who collectively add 330 pieces of snow-clearing equipment to the city’s own fleet of 110 pieces of equipment.

Many of the contractors are new because the city renewed its snow-clearing contracts in 2012, something it does every five years. It awards the contracts to the lowest bidders, according to Darrell Smith, Hamilton’s manager of roads and maintenance.

Some residential areas were missed in last week’s storm and staff is working to find the causes, Smith said. The missed side streets did not affect any emergency services, as far as he is aware.

Smith stressed that everything is being investigated, but it appears some areas of Waterdown and the west Mountain had more clusters of streets missed than other parts of the city.

Smith adds, however, that there were issues citywide, especially with individual streets being missed.

He said the city is still getting some reports of roads not properly treated, and staff has been going out to the areas of complaint to investigate. However, some residents mistakenly believe their street has not been plowed and properly treated if bare pavement is not showing, he noted.

His department is also conducting a “vendor performance review” of the city’s contract with outside operators....

The city wants to ensure there are no unwarranted costs associated with the snow removal contract, and will take action to avoid further problems, he said.

The city’s workers plow the main streets while contractors tackle the Linc and Red Hill Expressway. Side streets are to be plowed by a mix of city staff and private operators.