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Jed Boal reporting Snow is piled high on the sides of your street and driveway, and there's more snow in the forecast. The cost of dealing with all that snow is beginning to add up.
Of the Utah Department of Transportation's (UDOT) entire $18 million dollar snow-removal budget for the winter, $16 million is already spent. That's a full 60 percent more than this time of year in the past two years.
It's hard for crews to keep the roads clear when people shovel the snow from their driveways right into the street. It may not seem like a big problem, but snow removal crews need help from the public.
Snow piles are taking over our yards. It's not always easy to find a place to shovel or blow the snow, but state and county crews need us to keep it on our properties.
Salt Lake County snow plow crews are cleaning up after yesterday's storm and getting ready for another blast. Already this winter, 23 separate plowings--about average for a full winter--and crews need help when you clear snow.
Plows usually push a mound of heavy snow and ice onto the edge of our driveways, and it can get frustrating to keep the way clear. But pushing that snow back onto the road is illegal and creates a safety hazard.
"It's a major problem. It's valley-wide," explained Larry Helquist, Salt Lake County operations maintenance manager. "We get the roads cleared off and residents will drive faster. They'll go around the corner and the snow in the road causes an icing problem."
As the piles of snow get larger and larger, it may make sense to pitch the snow into the street. But the plow crews have a responsibility to keep the roads clear and safe, regardless of the inconvenience to the property owners.
County workers are talking to violators and leaving them with a card explaining the state law: "It is unlawful for any person to place snow from a driveway onto any road or highway which interferes with the normal use or creates a safety hazard."
"The majority of residents have started to comply, but there are still thousands of residents that blow into the road," Helquist said.
Another storm is arriving soon, and county crews believe if they can eliminate road parking and blowing snow onto the road, they can make the roads safer for all of us.
