Category: Snow Page 1 of 2

Thanks to our City Staff for rolling out this excellent service recently. Residents can now check the snow progress on the City roadways on this interactive map.

New Citizen link for College Park snow progress map.

The program allows citizens to zoom in and/or out as well as search for a specific road name. As roadways are initially treated/plowed, the roadway(s) will be shaded green.

I just drove around the neighborhood (in north College Park) and found the streets are very clean. Thanks to our Public Works crews for doing a great job preparing for and executing our snow plan. DPW crews treated City streets on Friday with salt brine and started very early this morning treating and monitoring streets. We will have an overnight crew monitoring for ice and then staff back early tomorrow morning.

Here is the latest forecast. Hope this is helpful:
Tonight
Snow before 9pm, then snow, possibly mixed with freezing rain between 9pm and 11pm, then rain, possibly mixed with freezing rain after 11pm. Low around 32. Northeast wind around 11 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. Little or no ice accumulation expected. New snow accumulation of around an inch possible.
Monday
Rain and freezing rain, possibly mixed with sleet before noon, then rain and snow between noon and 2pm, then snow likely after 2pm. High near 34. North wind 11 to 17 mph, with gusts as high as 26 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New ice accumulation of less than a 0.1 of an inch possible. New snow and sleet accumulation of less than one inch possible.
Monday Night
Snow likely before 8pm, then snow likely, possibly mixed with freezing rain between 8pm and 11pm, then snow likely after 11pm. Cloudy, with a low around 30. North wind 11 to 16 mph, with gusts as high as 23 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%. Little or no ice accumulation expected. New snow accumulation of around an inch possible.

The City of College Park’s priority during a snow event is public safety. Our goal is to clear snow and ice as quickly and efficiently as possible, restoring safe travel for emergency crews, motorists, and pedestrians. Industrial Snow Removal is considered an emergency operation and takes precedence over other Public Works tasks.

The snow plan will go into effect upon the order of the City Manager or the Director of Public Works. The plan consists of an Alert Phase and an Operation Phase. The alert phase may include pre-treating designated streets with salt brine to prevent snow and ice adhesion to the road surface. Snow or icy precipitation, which requires roadway treatment, will be considered an emergency under the operational phase.

These steps will be followed during a snow emergency:

• Snow removal equipment will be dispatched to predetermined routes when snow or ice is imminent. Salting operations usually begin at the onset of precipitation, depending on pavement temperature and the forecast.
• First application of salt will be ordered by the Director or Assistant Director of Public Works. Plowing operations will commence when there is an accumulated amount of snow or slush on the roadway.
• Initially, one lane will be plowed on all streets followed by widening of the plowed lane. All streets will be plowed curb to curb, as conditions allow.
• Designated crews will be dispatched to clear sidewalks, bus stops, Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beach (RRFB) cross walks, and the Trolley Trail locations throughout the City.
• Snow and ice clearing operations will be carried out in accordance with established priorities as circumstances permit.

Updates

The Department of Public Works is staffed around the clock during snow events.

Updates will be posted on the City’s website (www.collegeparkmd.gov), all City social media accounts (Facebook, Twitter and Instagram) and emailed (sign up at www.collegeparkmd.gov/cpconnect).

You can also contact the Department of Public Works for more information by phone at 240-487-3590 or email publicworks@collegeparkmd.gov.

[City of College Park]

Today is the Department of Public Work’s In-Service Snow Training Day!

Because of the training, Department of Public Works is closed to the public today (no bulk collections, deliveries, or loading of compost/wood mulch will occur). We apologize for any inconvenience.

The purpose of this training is to prepare crews for snow clearing duties which include proper handling of materials, and proper maintenance and operation of equipment. Knowing the route is also essential. The In-Service Snow Training is a classroom session of training and a “Dry Run” of the routes which is a valuable safety practice. Dry run means driving the entire Heavy & Light Plow routes assigned to each driver in non-snow and ice conditions to help awareness of features that may impact snow plowing and spreading materials.

This pre-storm run is for drivers to inspect and observe landmarks and the locations of possible hazards (school locations, guardrails, curbs, tight streets, etc.) which may cause difficulty or be hidden by falling or plowed snow.

[City of College Park]

[From City’s Department of Public Works]

Due to the expected winter weather, the City of College Park will delay refuse and recycling collection today.

Today’s collections (College Park Woods; Crystal Springs; Patricia Court; area north of MD 193, west of Rhode Island Ave, and east of Baltimore Ave) will be picked up on Thursday, and Wednesday’s collections (Cherry Hill; Autoville North; Sunnyside; area north of MD 193 and east of Rhode Island Ave) will be picked up on Friday.

Because of the Presidents’ Day holiday, collections were already shifted forward by one day; Monday’s collections that were scheduled for today have been picked up. With snow projected to begin accumulating between 3:00-5:00 a.m. today morning, Department of Public Works crews will begin snow and ice operations tonight in preparation of the storm, and will continue throughout its duration.

The decision to delay refuse and recycling collection allows our crews to effectively clear the roads of snow and ice, and will help ensure the safety of our staff and residents.

Four to six inches of snow and ice are projected for today; please help our crews and snow plows clear the roads by parking in your driveway, or on the same side of the road as your neighbors. For more information including parking guides and shoveling tips, visit www.collegeparkmd.gov/snow.

Department of Public Works crews continue to clear routes. Crews are plowing/ salting routes. We have about 6 inch accumulation and could get 3 more inches. As soon as we clear down to asphalt, the heavier snow covers the route up again and we need to retreat and re-plow. DPW will continue to monitor conditions and work to keep roads clear in College Park. Residents can help us by parking off streets and in driveways and park close to curbs.

Please be aware that shoveling snow can pose a health hazard, so only shovel if your physical condition allows.

And please remember that wet snow is heavy and can be hazardous. Do not shovel snow if you have a heart condition or any other medical conditions and, always, no matter your situation, never over exert yourself. Please be safe in these weather conditions, and make sure to stay warm at home. Now would be a great time to make sure you don’t need heater maintenance or take care of any heater repair you may have been putting off so that it will run as effectively and efficiently as possible, if you have not done so ahead of time.

Thank you all who have volunteered so far. We still need a couple of volunteers based on the requests we have from our elderly neighbors and neighbors with a disability. As you’ve seen we’re having more accumulations (up to 6 inches) than what was forecasted before. Thank you!

At tomorrow’s Council worksession, the Council and staff will discuss and review snow removal efforts and options for future improvements. During the recent snow storm, our region received approximately 25 inches of snow in about a day and a half period of time.

Thanks to our very capable Public Works crew, the City of College Park was one of the very few jurisdictions that could claim most of our streets were open within 24 hours following this significant snow event.

Staff thinks that City crews were not able to provide curb-to-curb snow removal service because of several constraints. In order to minimize those constraints, staff is recommending the followings: (a) Park off the street whenever possible so plows can clear snow to the curb.
(b) Park on the EVEN side of the street if off-street parking is not available. Exception: if a resident’s address is odd-numbered and the area across from their house is undeveloped, park on the odd side of the street.
(c) Park close to the curb. Vehicles parked more than 12” from the curb may be ticketed or even towed, as this severely inhibits the passage of snow plow trucks. Vehicles parked in the middle of the street will be ticketed and towed.

If, however we’re willing to have something significantly less than curb to curb snow removal, staff is suggesting the followings:
(a) Plow as wide a path as is reasonably possible without striking any vehicles, realizing the closer the plow gets, the risk of hitting a vehicle and receiving a subsequent claim increases. (b) Minimize or eliminate any gaps in plowing until complete to avoid giving residents the impression that plowing has stopped, signaling that residents should clear their driveways and sidewalks.
(c) Review and redesign plow routes, if necessary, to maximize snow removal and to ensure clear lanes of travel.
(d) Increase plow driver training to support a. and c.
(e) Review equipment and staffing needs to ensure all cul-de-sacs and dead-end streets are given equal attention as secondary streets.

If you’ve additional suggestions, please let me know.

College Park 2014 Snow Plan

A few weeks ago, I received quite a few emails / inquiries from my constituents about the ways City’s Public Works department does the snow plowing job. I thought it’d be a good idea to share the inner working of that operation so that we all know how things are executed in the events of snow. You can read the entire document here: Snow plan FY14. Please feel free to let me know if you have any questions.

Snow Plan – General Information
The City of College Park snow and ice removal plan includes equipment, materials and personnel supplied by the Public Works Department. The City maintains approximately 55 road miles, or over 165 lane miles, of roadways. The City has a covered salt storage structure that can hold about 500 tons of rock salt, and two 2,500-gallon storage tanks for liquid deicing material.

The snow plan will go into effect upon the order of the City Manager or the Director of Public Works. The plan consists of an Alert Phase and an Operation Phase. Snow or icy precipitation, which requires roadway treatment, will be considered an emergency under the operational phase. The City has established a “Bare Road” policy. Snow removal and/or remedial work will be continued until this policy goal has been reached.

Prior to November 15th, salt spreading and snow removal equipment will be tested and stored in a ready condition. Personnel will receive training related to snow and ice removal procedures.

Snow-Ice Fighting Techniques
The method of fighting a winter storm is determined by several factors: temperature, condition of pavement (wet, dry or icy), type of precipitation at the beginning of the storm and the storm forecast. The Public Works department will implement procedures such as sealcoating that will be most effective to address roadway safety and weather conditions.

Salting operations are imperative as a first measure. The purpose of applying salt is to form a brine solution to prevent the precipitation (snow/ice) from bonding to the pavement. Formation of the salt brine on the roadway may take up to one half hour after application; it is important that the roadway not be plowed during this time in allow the brine solution to form. Precipitation, which accumulates on an untreated road surface, may become compacted by traffic and bond to the road creating a “hardpack” that becomes very difficult to remove. Salt is not intended to melt snow.

Salt, spread alone or in combination with liquid deicing products, applied to the roadway under snow or ice contributes to a reasonable effort in achieving the “bare road” policy. The combination of salt and liquid deicing products allow salt to remain effective at lower temperatures and retard the development of a “hardpack” layer. Salt spread on top of accumulated snow gets plowed away; therefore effective salt applications should be made when snow accumulation is 1-inch or less.

Read More

Snow plowing

In tomorrow’s work session, the Council will discuss purchase of a Freight-liner salt spreader and snow plow truck in the amount of $148,482.

The City’s Department of Public Works currently has six medium duty size dump trucks that have V-Box spreaders and 10′ wide snow plows for winter use. Four of the six trucks have liquid de-icing tanks that allow Public Works to mix liquid with the salt for easier and faster snow removal from the streets.

Public Works needs another medium size snow plow truck to add to its fleet to better help them during snow events. Staff has researched bids by other local government entities to find the most competitive provider for the appropriate piece of equipment that can even provide repairs or heavy equipment spare parts for any type of emergency on their equipment. Unfortunately, the Maryland State Highway Administration and the local counties do not use V-Box equipment because the roadways that they are plowing do not have low hanging utility wires (Comcast, Verizon & Pepco), like the City does.

Staff has learned that the District of Columbia issued a contract to Johnson Truck Center, LLC, Landover, Maryland for a Freightliner M2 106 Chassis with a Henderson heavy duty stainless steel dump body, a Henderson 1 0′ reversible hydraulic snow plow, and a Henderson stainless steel V –Box Spreader. Henderson Truck Equipment is based in Manchester, Iowa. In addition to the District of Columbia ordering 45 of those snow plow trucks, the Maryland State Highway Administration ordered 100 larger model Freightliners Trucks with Henderson equipment.

Therefore, Henderson has selected Intercon Truck Equipment, Joppa, Maryland as their local dealer. Intercon will stock parts for the Henderson equipment and can perform maintenance. Staff is recommending that the City of College Park purchase from Johnson Truck Center, one (1) 2013 Freightliner M2 1 06 chassis with a Henderson dump body, a Henderson V-Box Spreader with a pre-wet system and a Henderson 10′ snow plow in the amount of $148,482.00.

This expense would be charged to the current CIP account 925061- Vehicle Replacement Program–which currently has funding in the amount of $284,466.00. A second expenditure of approximately $28,000.00 will be forthcoming for College Park’s share of the new Four Cities Street Sweeper.

If the order is placed now, Public Works should be able to have both the truck and equipment built and delivered to them by mid-January 2013. If the order is placed in November, the City will have to wait until mid-March 2013 for delivery, after the snow season usually ends.