[See highlighted paragraphs at end of article regarding snow removal on pathways and AT routes...] Snow-shovelling relief on way for some City to improve lane plowing where front access lacking

By: Jen Skerritt Posted: 09/14/2011

THE bad news is Winnipeggers with back lanes will still have to dig out of windrows this winter.

The good news is relief may be on the way for some neighbourhoods in 2012.

On Tuesday, city council's public works committee approved a plan to spend an additional $50,000 to remove windrows and enhance snow-clearing in back lanes with no front-street access in 2012 and beyond. That means residents in neighbourhoods such as Wildwood Park will no longer have to shovel their way through piles of snow to back out of their lanes.

Public works director Brad Sacher said some residents in neighbourhoods such as Wildwood Park and parts of Transcona don't have a front street to park on because they are bordered by sidewalks or parks. In these areas, Sacher said wider back lanes essentially function as front streets.

"They literally would have to shovel their way out to get to these paths that we had created," Sacher said. "It wasn't working very well with those residents."

If the plan is approved by executive policy committee and then council, Sacher said snowplows will clear those back lanes and remove any windrows left behind by plows. In neighbourhoods where residents with back lanes also have front streets, Sacher said there will not be any changes to how plows clear snow from the back lanes.

At the same time, the city will consider a plan to spend an additional $250,000 in 2012 to clear more snow from active transportation routes.

Sacher said the idea is to encourage more people to use the trails for recreation and to commute during the winter. Last year, the city spent about $125,000 to plow active transportation trails, and Sacher said the new routes that could be targeted would be determined with input from commuter cyclists and recreational users.

The city does not track how many people cycle during the winter, but Sacher said the department suspects it is on the rise.

"It's a significant increase in the number of trails we're going to be able to address," he said.

Fort Rouge Coun. Jenny Gerbasi said more people are using active transportation corridors than ever before and the move is a positive step for the city.

"There are more hardy winter riders," Gerbasi said.

jen.skerritt@freepress.mb.ca