Winter Maintenance | Municipality of Brockton

The Ontario Minimum Maintenance Standards outline priority standards and maintenance requirements for each roadway within Municipal jurisdiction. Municipal staff work diligently to keep up with the snow to meet and exceed the minimum standards where possible. Plow Operators must deposit snow on or near driveways during the snow clearing operations. There is no practical way to conduct the work without this occurring.

Staff remind residents that it is prohibited by the Highway Traffic Act to deposit snow on the roadway, so please ensure that any snow removal is being kept off the roadway.

Snowbanks are not playgrounds. Children playing on, in and around snowbanks may not be seen by passing vehicles and plow trucks. Never tunnel into snowbanks as they can easily collapse.

The following policies guide our winter maintenance and snowplowing activities:

How does the Municipality deal with the snow?

Plow drivers and graders are generally out maintaining the roads from the early hours of the morning into the early afternoon, every day if necessary! The operators are not working at night to ensure that staff are available to clear the roads for the morning commute.

Sidewalks are cleared as per the Winter Maintenance of Sidewalks Policy. Not all public sidewalks are maintained, and no public walkways are maintained by the Operations staff.

There are more than 440kms of roadway within Brockton, and staff work hard to ensure they are as well maintained as can be.

Can the Municipality clear the snow the snow plow put at the end of my driveway?

No, the Municipality does not have resources or time available to clear the snow from driveways. While we understand residents’ frustration that the snow is plowed onto the end of the driveway, it is not feasible for the Municipality to clear this and it is not practical for the plow operators to start and stop between driveways, especially in town. In order to properly maintain the roads, the blade needs to remain in contact with the road surface.

What about snowbanks!

Snowbanks in the downtown area are removed regularly by Operations staff. The work can be very disruptive for the downtown traffic, so the removal usually takes place in the early hours of the morning. Due to the use of heavy machinery, the noise can impact the surrounding area, so we do ask for your patience during this time.

The snowbanks at the end of private driveways are the responsibility of homeowners, and all homeowners are encouraged to keep snowbanks at a reasonable height to ensure visibility and the ability to exit the driveway safely.

Fire Hydrants

To ensure the most efficient response time in an emergency situation, staff request that residents ensure the closest fire hydrants to them are cleared.

Damages caused by Snow Removal

The Municipality of Brockton and the plow operators are not responsible for any damages that occurs within the municipal right of ways during snow clearing operations, as per Policy 2001-07: Repairs/Replacement of Encroachments on Road Allowances. This includes, but is not limited to:

Underground irrigation systems

Shrubbery, trees, gardens, etc

Fences

Lamp posts

Should a plow truck strike a mailbox and wooden post during snow plow operations, the municipality will provide a new wooden post to the resident. However, if damages occurred not from being struck, then the post will likely be found to be in poor condition and shall be the responsibility of the homeowner.

Winter Parking

Between 2:00am and 6:00am, there is no permitted parking on municipal streets in November, December, January, February, March and April in accordance with the Parking By-law. Any vehicle that is parked on the street may be subject to a ticket and/or removed at the owner’s expense.

Significant Weather Events

Significant weather events are issued when there is a weather hazard that could impact the municipality’s ability to pose a danger to users of the roadways within the Municipality. These declarations are not closures, however they do mean that drivers need to use extra caution when driving. These events also indicate that it may take staff longer to maintain road conditions or improve them to post storm status.

The Municipality will share this news as a news item from this website and on our Facebook page – so ensure that you are signed up to receive news updates and follow us on Facebook!

It is important to note that when these weather conditions are occurring, the roads and sidewalks may be covered in snow again before we have the chance to re-plow the road.

How do we decide when to declare a Significant Weather Event?

The Director of Operations will make this decision with the assistance of the Operations Manager. The decision is made after considering a number of factors including

Significant snow accumulation during a 24-hour period

Ice formation that occurs without warning from the weather forecast

High winds leading to blowing snow and large snow drifts

Freezing temperatures when de-icing operations will not be effective

How do we end a Significant Weather Event?

Staff continuously monitor the weather and road conditions throughout the event. Once it is determined that we are able to meet the Minimum Maintenance Standards, we will declare the event over.

Authority to call a Significant Weather Event

O. Reg 239-02: Minimum Maintenance Standards under the Municipal Act, 2001, gives municipalities the authority to declare a Significant Weather Event provided that the weather hazards, that are approaching or occurring, with the potential to pose a significant danger to those using the roadways.

Under this declaration, the Minimum Maintenance Standard timelines are suspended until the declaration is over.

Winter Driving Safety Tips

Always drive according to road and weather conditions

Keep a safe distance from Plow Trucks – if you can’t see their mirrors, they can’t see you!

Plows drive between 20-60kms/hr when clearing snow to ensure proper adhesion of the sand/salt mixture to the roadway, please be patient!

Make sure you have snow tires on your vehicle, and an ice scraper/snow brush to clear off your car