Historic Snow Event
Edmonton experienced a history-making snowfall this 2025/2026 Winter Season. Let's dive in.
Policy C409 Priorities
Priority 1: Arterials/Freeways (The Grid).
Priority 2: Collectors/Bus Routes.
Priority 3: Residential/Alleys.
When snow falls (2cm), crews MUST reset to P1.
The 24/7 Operations Reality
Crews run non-stop. But Residential roads = 9,000 lane km (75% of the network). The sheer volume (72cm) exceeded physical storage space, slowing every kilometer of clearing.
The Budget We Have vs. The Service You Want
Current State: We have the SNIC program we budgeted for ($67M Base).
Future State: This can change. Use the Budget Simulator below to see what "more robust" service actually costs.
Build your own Snow and Ice Control (SNIC) Program Budget
The budget is a balance of cost vs. convenience. Use the sliders to determine service levels. Watch the dashboard to see the tax impact.
Note: This SNIC budget is extracted from the general municipal budget for visualization purposes.Happy with your budget? Have your say and send it to the Councillor so he can add it to his deliberations for the Snow and Ice budget!
City Comparators: The "Sprawl Tax"
Edmonton (Base)
Calgary
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Winter Operations Control
Compare the Ideal Fleet Rollout vs. Historical Snow Events (Dec 2025 - Jan 2026).
Fleet & Physics
Arterials: Use High-Speed Plows (60km/h). They push snow quickly to the side.
Residential: Requires Graders (10km/h) to scrape hard-packed ice. Because they move 6x slower, it takes 6x longer to clear a neighborhood than a freeway.
-10°C: Salt (NaCl) stops melting snow.
-25°C: Calcium Chloride stops working.
-30°C: Sand provides grip, but no melting occurs. "Bare Pavement" is chemically impossible in deep freezes without extreme expense.