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SALT LAKE CITY — To improve street snow removal this winter, Salt Lake City is launching a pilot program to restrict on-street parking on priority roads during nighttime hours.
"Over the years, the Public Services Department has received numerous complaints and concerns from residents about snow mounds that build up on their streets and turn to ice, decreasing the amount of on-street parking and making it difficult to safely enter or exit their vehicles," said Tara Olson, Salt Lake City Public Services project analyst. "This program will allow city crews to clear those snow mounds before they freeze to help alleviate problems for residents."
The pilot program will test restricting on-street parking on either the odd or even side of the street between 1 and 6 a.m. on nine road sections selected for the program. The restrictions will only be in place during snow events significant enough to warrant a "heavy snow alert," issued by the city's street division, Olson said.
The streets chosen for the pilot program are:
East-west streets
• 200 South from State Street to University Street
• Third Avenue from Canyon Road to Virginia Street
• 800 South/Indiana from Redwood Road to 1300 East
• 900 South from 1300 East to Foothill
• 2700 South from Highland to 2200 East
North-south streets
• 500 East from 800 South to 2100 South
• 200 West from 750 North to 900 South
• 900 West from North Temple to 1000 North
• 1200 West from 300 North to Reclamation Road
Once the alert is issued, it will restrict parking on the odd or even side of the street based on the street address and the odd or even calendar day. The alert will specify what side of the street residents need to park on.
An alert will be declared based on a number of forecasted storm conditions, including expected snow accumulation and freezing temperatures. If an upcoming storm meets the required conditions, the city will issue the alert to impacted residents the day before the storm using a notification system that includes telephone, text and email messages in both English and Spanish.
The city will also maintain a 24-hour snow hotline, 801-535-6500, where residents can call for current information and instructions.
Warning notices - no tickets
During the pilot program, Olson said the city will not enforce or issue tickets to residents who fail to follow the alert parking guidelines. There will only be warning notices distributed in an effort to educate parkers about the program.
The goal of the warning notices is to aid compliance and to evaluate the effectiveness of the program, Olson said.
"This program is designed to benefit city residents and business owners by greatly improving snow removal from streets and improving the flow of traffic, improving bike lane and street access, reducing snowbound vehicles and related vehicle damage, and reducing complaints related to snow removal in residential and business areas throughout the city," Olson said.
City officials have already mailed program information to the 3,750 residents living on the streets chosen for the program. Signs providing the program's plow information have also been installed on all impacted streets.
