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Troy council discusses new snow-emergency rules; city says 4-inch threshold, $120,000 local streets cost
Summary
Councilors reviewed the city's new plowing/moving-cars ordinance and snow-emergency threshold. City staff said a 4-inch accumulation triggers local-road operations, the operation can cost about $120,000, and the DPW will use an online tracker and a rotating priority map that starts in the northwest quadrant.
Council members and city staff discussed Troy's new plowing and vehicle-move ordinance and preparations for an expected winter storm during the Feb. 10 Troy City Council meeting.
Council member Chamberlain Krenge asked staff how the new ordinance is working and whether residents are aware of the rules for moving cars. City staff said they are issuing warnings as this is the first year the ordinance is in effect and that the police department will help enforce compliance while residents acclimate.
City staff described the operational threshold and procedures. Staff said the city will declare a snow emergency for local roads when accumulation reaches 4 inches; the National Weather Service had assigned a 67% probability that the upcoming storm would exceed that level. City staff also said that, because of sleet or slippery conditions, the city can enter local-road operations even if measured accumulation is below 4 inches.
"We are prepared to do so with that announcement. And it would be if we go into local roads, we'll declare that snow emergency. 4 inches is our threshold," said a city spokesperson. "It's a very expensive operation. That's why we don't do it very often, ... it's about a hundred and $20,000 operation when we go in and do those local roads." (City staff)
Public-works staff described a live online tracker that shows when crews will serve neighborhoods and said the northwest quadrant is prioritized first because of hillier streets. The DPW official asked councilors to remember the rotation schedule and noted the city maintains records to ensure equitable rotation.
Council members asked operational questions: whether trash pickup would be affected and how residents sign up for alerts. Staff said typical trash pickup is not affected for 4–6 inches, but larger storms could require coordination with private haulers. Staff encouraged residents to sign up for city alerts and said the DPW tracker link will appear on the city's Department of Public Works webpage when active.
Councilors and staff said the city will issue warnings and public information as storms approach to give residents time to move vehicles and prepare.
