City Defers Winter Maintenance Decision

11/02/2024

This is a release from the City of Ottawa:

Update on the Winter Maintenance Quality Standards Review

Date: October 31st, 2024

The purpose of this memorandum is to provide the Mayor and Members of Council with an update on the Public Works Department’s review of its Winter Maintenance Quality Standards.

Background

As directed by Council, the Public Works Department has undertaken a comprehensive review of its winter maintenance operations over the past five years, with updates provided to members of Council annually. During this time, the Department completed a Service Delivery Review, a municipal scan of comparative winter operations, and an in-depth review of its Winter Maintenance Quality Standards that was presented to the Transportation Committee and Council in November 2023. The review found that the City of Ottawa provides a high level of service for residents and exceeds the Minimum Maintenance Standards set by the province. These findings were further bolstered by resident engagement feedback, which found that residents were generally satisfied with the current level of service for the City’s winter maintenance operations, with some recommendations for improvements to residential roadway clearing and sidewalk maintenance.

At the April 17th Council meeting staff were directed to report on Winter Maintenance Quality Standards Review alongside a response to Councillor Brown’s Private Laneway Plows Motion (Motion No. 2024-34-05) at a Joint meeting of Transportation Committee and Agricultural and Rural Affairs Committee.

Continuous Improvements to Winter Maintenance Operations

Over the past five years, the Public Works Department has implemented several service enhancements to its current operational practices to increase efficiency and improve services based on Council direction and resident feedback, including:

Responding more proactively and aggressively to all types of winter events, specifically smaller events earlier in the winter season to prevent significant snowpack on sidewalks and residential streets, which leads to ice buildup and rutting.
Reassigning staff and equipment to sidewalk and pathway routes to create a stronger balance with road maintenance operations. Approximately 250 of the 540 winter maintenance resources are now clearing the City’s 2,500 km of sidewalks and pathways.
Introducing 24/7 deployment for sidewalk and pathway clearing across the city, resulting in less snowpack and ice build-up both during and after winter events – specifically within residential areas and school zones.
Collaborating with the Corporate Accessibility Office to develop a training video for front line operators highlighting specific challenges and barriers on the sidewalks, pathways, and other pedestrian facilities for people with disabilities.

Furthermore, staff have implemented several continuous improvement measures in the areas of winter maintenance operations, service delivery and communications, for example: • Communicating proactively with Councillors and residents before, during?and after winter events.

Sharing GPS tracking and route completion information with Councillors (Geotab – Citizen Insights).
Replacing all steel plow blades with rubber blades which helps the plow follow the contours of the road better and allows for improved snow and ice removal. • Alternating starting points of residential beats to make plowing more equitable. • Establishing set times to declare both day- and nighttime parking bans: o Nighttime winter weather parking bans are called by 9 am on the day the ban is scheduled to go into effect. During a nighttime ban, street parking is prohibited between 7 pm and 7 am.

o Daytime winter weather parking bans are called by 3:30 pm on the day before the ban is scheduled to go into effect. During a daytime ban, street parking is prohibited between 10 am and 7 pm.

Providing additional off-street parking during parking bans at City recreation facilities, OC Transpo park-and-rides, and City parking garages.
Continuing to allow paid parking during winter parking bans in designated business areas.

Winter Maintenance Quality Standards Review – Next Steps

The Public Works Department has completed its review of the Winter Maintenance Quality Standards. While staff have identified several opportunities to increase service standards, particularly for the active transportation network, there are operational and financial implications associated with these improvements for the 2024-2025 winter season. In addition to requiring enough lead time to prepare for any changes in route deployment, the Public Works Department recognizes that any increase to its service standards would add to the City’s current financial challenges. Given that the City currently provides a high level of service for residents and that Council has approved more than $10M in additional investments for winter operations over the last three years, staff are deferring making any recommendations in 2024-2025. In the interim, staff will continue to leverage Councillor and resident feedback to identify further improvements and efficiencies, such as shortening residential and sidewalk beats and addressing windrow issues. At this time, staff will also continue to use effective operational judgement to manage winter conditions as necessary. While the Winter Maintenance Quality Standards are the guideline upon which winter events are planned, real-time execution is based on the operations required to keep the City’s transportation network safe, passable, and accessible.

With the Maintenance Quality Standards Review report being deferred, staff will still proceed with bringing forward an information report in response to Councillor Brown’s Private Laneway Plows Motion (Motion No. 2024-34-05) in Q1 2025. This report will be presented at both Transportation Committee and Agricultural and Rural Affairs Committee as outlined in the original motion.

Planning for the 2024-25 Winter Season

The Public Works Department continues its preparations for the upcoming winter season. Equipment is being prepared and staff are getting ready to transition to their winter operations positions. As part of the Department’s pre-winter outreach activities, Roads and Parking Services will engage with members of Council in the coming weeks.

Thank you,

Original signed by

Alain Gonthier

General Manager

Public Works Department