City plows able to get to side streets, but not without challenges

Clean up efforts extend into the week after a weekend snow event, CTV London's Gerry Dewan has the details.

The clean up continues after near constant snowfall this past weekend with the focus on sidewalks and side streets.

While Wharncliffe Road was clear of snow by Monday afternoon, drivers making a turn onto Byron Avenue in the Old South neighbourhood found themselves behind a car bogged down in deep snow.

It was similar story on many streets in the Oakridge neighbourhood.

Mike Mikolajczak has been living on Flintlock Road in Oakridge for almost a quarter century and has grown accustomed to having to wait for crews to get to his street, “Not only this winter, but previous winters, especially with higher amount of snow.”

Mikolajczak is retired now but when he was working being on one of the last streets to be cleared was a bigger concern, “I was working for a long time, you know. So, living here, on some days it was really harsh.”

On this day, there was contributing factor for the delayed cleanup in Oakridge. A plow was cleaning up a cul-de-sac on Mahogany Road when it also got stuck in snow.

On the upside, the Family Day holiday meant there was less urgency to be out and about. Nine-year-old Luke and his dad, Andrew, were out helping neighbours clean out their driveways. It was Luke’s first time operating a snow blower and he found one aspect of the clean up a little challenging, “How to [get it to] go in, like, big snow.”

Andrew also used his pickup truck to help get the snow plow moving after about 20 minutes.

The city’s Manager of Road Operations, Joel Gillard, told CTV News on the weekend that sidewalk clearing could also take some time, “You’ll see our force is continually plowing those sidewalks throughout the week.”

Mikolajczak understands the challenges the city faces, and credits them with trying to keep people moving. During the last major snowfall Mikolajczak contacted the city and they responded quickly, “I sent them an email right away, and an hour later, the plow was here. So, I was happy. And I thanked them for that action.”

With no more significant snow events expected over the next few days, crews should be able make headway on the roads and sidewalks.