Snow Removal & Winter Maintenance

On this page:

Standards
Plowing
Plowing routes
Snow removal
Snow clearing

Standards

From November 1 to April 15 of the following year, we plow, sand, salt and remove snow from:

Over 400 kilometres of roads
About 30 kilometres of sidewalks
Town parking lots

The Town is required to meet the Provincial Minimum Maintenance Standards for Municipal Highways (MMS). The MMS are standards from the Province of Ontario for road maintenance. Snow and ice are removed within a specified time frame. Standards can vary by road class, speed limit and traffic volume on a roadway.

Plowing

When 2-3 inches of snow has accumulated, crews begin to work on roads and sidewalks along main routes; when snow levels reach 3-4 inches, plows will visit secondary/local roads and sidewalks. Staff watch temperature and snowfall amounts closely. Plows may be diverted from one area to another during weather events. This helps maintain routes with high traffic, safely and more efficiently.

Main roads aim to be plowed within 6-12 hours after snowfall has ended, and all other roads within 12-16 hours after snowfall has ended. We aim to have all sidewalks clear within 48 hours. The length of time it will take to plow roads, depends on:

Time of day storm starts
Time of day storm ends
How long storm lasts
Wind conditions
Temperatures
Traffic and obstacles (i.e. parked cars)

Plowing vehicles

The Town has:

Ten plow/sander trucks
Graders
Loaders
Three sidewalk plows

Each of these vehicles have an assigned route.

Plowing routes

The Town of Huntsville has 9 dedicated plow routes. Each route takes about 6-7 hours to complete. Our drivers operate on a split shift model during the weekdays.

Reminder: Please keep a safe distance back from plows, avoid passing, and be patient with plow drivers.

Main routes focus on main roads which carry large traffic volume, such as:

Bus routes
School areas
Emergency service areas (fire, police, hospital)
Critical areas on hills, curves and bridges

These roads are the first priority roads and are maintained to a bare pavement condition.

Designated secondary routes focus on the streets that link the main routes. Links could include:

Secondary streets; or
Residential streets

These streets are the second priority and are maintained to a centre bare pavement condition.

Secondary/local routes include all streets that:

Are not main routes or designated secondary routes
Are low volume traffic

These streets are not brought to a bare pavement condition but are plowed and sanded as necessary to provide safe travel. These routes are serviced after the main and designated secondary routes have been cleared.

District of Muskoka snow clearing priorities

The District of Muskoka owns and maintains many roads in the Town's limits. Check the list of District roads if you are unsure who maintains a road.

If you have a plowing concern on a District road, contact:

Muskoka Public Works at 705-645-6764 or publicworks@muskoka.on.ca
Visit muskoka.on.ca for additional contacts

Snow removal

Snow removal is different to snow plowing. Plowing pushes snow to road edges, whereas removal is when crews take away the large banks that pile up on road edges or in parking lots.

Benefits of snow removal

Removes “tunneling effect” of snow banks and improves sight lines
Reduces amount of sand along the roads for a quicker spring cleanup (not as much sand to sweep up)
Reduces amount of sand that washes into the roadside catch basins and ditches in the spring

Reminders

Do not shovel, blow or plow snow out onto a public roadway. Under the Ontario Highway Traffic Act it is illegal.
Keep sidewalks by your property or home free and clear of ice and snow. This is required between 9am and 5pm daily.

Snow clearing

Town-owned parking lots are generally cleared between midnight and 6 a.m. If a vehicle is parked in a lot between these hours, it may get plowed in.

View the parking map to find out where to park safely during the winter months.