Toronto officials say removing snow from streets now a priority after major storms

Toronto crews have shifted their focus from snow clearing to snow removal following two major storms that blanketed the city in the past week, officials say.

That means city crews, which have been salting and plowing streets and sidewalks since last Wednesday, are collecting snow using dump trucks and moving it to five designated sites. The city has more than 450 dump trucks as part of its snow removal operation.

At a news conference on Wednesday, city staff said crews are working around the clock. 

"We know that this is a trying time for the city when you can't get around like you normally would," Barbara Gray, general manager of the city's transportation division, told reporters.

"We just ask that you be patient, you be safe out there. You give yourself extra time to get where you need to go." 

Snow removal, which is a "pretty slow" operation, is expected to take up to three weeks, Gray said.

"We are hopeful that we can get it done sooner. We've estimated that time frame based on the volume of snow that we've received," she said. "But as we mentioned with our crews, even with our crews working 24/7, it is a slow operation."

Gray said it takes five to 10 minutes to plow a kilometre of street but it takes about 10 hours to remove snow from that distance.

Residents may see temporary orange signs in snowbanks telling them to move their vehicles off the street ahead of snow removal operations. she said. Crews may knock on people's doors to ask them to move their vehicles.

In a news release on Wednesday, the city said crews removed snow from some locations on Friday to ensure those areas were accessible to pedestrians, emergency and TTC vehicles. Snow removal has been done on bridge decks, corners and "really tight locations," Gray said.

The priority now will be main street roads and sidewalks with transit routes, bus stops, hospital and emergency service stations and school bus loading zones, as well as roads that have limited space for snow storage where excess snow has created problems.

"By prioritizing these locations, we will help to ensure safety and accessibility for the most vulnerable road users, including pedestrians, people with disabilities, students and transit riders, as well as maintaining access for first responders," Gray said. 

For some people with disabilities, getting around the city has been a challenge, prompting some to stay home.

David Lepofsky, a disability rights advocate, said the city is full of barriers for people with disabilities when there is no snow, but now they face "man-made" barriers due to the piles of snow on sidewalks.