Snow removal could take more than 72 hours, Tory says

Toronto invoked a major snow storm condition prohibiting stopping or parking on designated snow routes at the risk of fines or towing

Thestar.com
Jan. 18, 2022
Maria Iqbal

Toronto Mayor John Tory said it’s likely to take more than 72 hours -- after plows finish their first pass -- to clean up after Monday’s storm as the city activated measures to accelerate the process.

“It was a good day to leave the car at home and I think tomorrow would be the same thing and maybe even the next day after that,” Tory said at a news conference late Monday afternoon.

As of 7 p.m. Monday Toronto has seen 36 cm. of snowfall, an estimate based on the change in snow depth, according to a statement on Environment Canada’s website. Ottawa saw the most snowfall in the province, with 47 cm. as of the same time.

The statement said the snowfall amounts were the within the top 10 highest reported in a single snowfall event for both Toronto Pearson International Airport and Ottawa International Airport.

The city activated a major snowstorm condition before 6 p.m. on Monday. It prohibits parking on designated snow routes for 72 hours, at the risk of fines or towing. Though the measure can be cancelled before the 72 hours are up, Tory said it’s likely to be extended as crews set out to plow the piles of snow.

Signs indicate designated snow routes, but a city release said they were mainly in the downtown core and included all streetcar routes. Parking on a designated snow route can lead to a fine of up to $200. Towed vehicles are usually placed on an adjacent street, the release said, adding illegally parked vehicles may be tagged, towed and impounded. Residents should call Toronto police at 416-808-2222 to find a vehicle towed from a major roadway, the city said.

The storm had Toronto police close access to the Don Valley Parkway and Gardiner Expressway for several hours. Both highways have since reopened.

In a live video posted to Twitter shortly after 2 p.m. on Monday., OPP Constable Kerry Schmidt said the 401 eastbound to the northbound highway 400 was inaccessible because of transport trucks blocking lanes and stuck in the snow. Schmidt said many of the drivers had been on the highway since before 7 a.m.

In another Twitter update posted about two hours later, Schmidt said snowplows had arrived and bladed a trail for the tow trucks to get through. As police directed a line of slow-moving traffic along the highway, a driver remarked to Schmidt that they had been waiting eight hours to start moving.

Airport taxi driver Sukhi Sidhu was one of the many drivers stuck on the 401 Monday afternoon. Speaking from inside his vehicle, he said his car had been in park and stuck on the highway for eight hours and counting.

“It hasn’t moved a single centimetre since 7:30 a.m.,” Sidhu said.

“No food, no water. It’s pretty terrible. There (are) kids in cars here, there (are) some elderly folks, there (are) some people who were working overnight shifts and they’re just trying to get home.”

Firefighter Lindsay Parry, who was making his way home from a 24-hour shift, was similarly been stuck on the 401 since 8:30 a.m., and said there hadn’t been any movement.

“I’ve been turning my truck on and off every so often just to warm it up and to conserve the fuel because I have no idea how long I’ll be here for,” Parry said in a phone interview Monday afternoon, adding he was “very frustrated.”

Though the city previously said it expected to have up to 60 per cent of public sector staff off due to COVID, Tory said Monday that personnel wasn’t an issue.

“If there was a challenge that was in front of us, it was the pace at which the snow fell,” he said, adding that there was “a full complement” of staff on the roads.

The city couldn’t provide the number of snow clearing staff off sick or isolating, noting it’s a mostly contracted service.

Tory noted that the city had been monitoring the storm from late last week, and began preparations on Sunday.

Pearson International Airport recorded slightly less snowfall than downtown Toronto, with 33 cm. About 77 per cent of departures and 79 per cent of arrivals were cancelled on Monday. The airport said its crews were working hard to clear snow and to ensure an “efficient startup” on Tuesday morning, but noted that lingering effects of the storm could cause delays.

“We ask that those scheduled to travel tomorrow check their flight status with their airline or on torontopearson.com and allow more time,” spokesperson Rachel Bertone said in a statement.