Love it or hate it, snow isn't what Sudburians were hoping for when they looked out their windows Tuesday morning.
Old man winter had (at least) one more snowy punch for the Nickel City that led some to wonder about whether it's a good idea to change their winter tires.
"We had a few cancellations today and it's to be expected," said Mike Kalicki, owner and operator of Sudbury Custom Auto.
"Generally speaking, we get that nice burst of warm weather at the beginning of April and it is a little too soon in my opinion. I usually like to wait until the middle to end of April to get those winters off."
Kalicki said business has been ramping up in April. He, like most tire shops CTV spoke with, is booking a week and a half to two weeks in advance.
He said winter tires are becoming more commonplace in the region and more people are starting to make that seasonal swap.
"Winter tires can make a big difference when it comes to those snow and ice conditions," Kalicki said.
"It just doesn't compare to an all-season type of a tire. If you want good traction, safety, nothing beats a winter tire in winter conditions."
It's a similar story with CAA North and East Ontario, which has started a service in which it is coming to homes to do the swap.
General operations manager Mike Schmidt said the rule of thumb they like to leave members with is the seven-degree rule.
"It's a question that we get a lot," Schmidt said.
"What we're looking for is consistent temperatures of seven degrees or more and that's going to be the best time to replace the tires because that's when your summer tires, the design and the manufacturing specs of the tires are at their strongest."
Schmidt said they, too, have been getting questions about the recent winter weather and weather the region still might see.
He's a big supporter of using winter tires in this part of the country.
"It's an investment into safety and the vehicle and quite often insurance companies are going to give you a break," he said.
As for whether or not Mother Nature is finished with us and it's time to get those summer tires on, Environment Canada said that's more up to the comfortability of individual drivers.
Meteorologist Gerald Cheng told CTV News it's not unheard of for cities like Sudbury to see snow in May.
"Spring is the season where the cold and warm air masses duke it out in Ontario and that's why we see big swings in temperatures," Cheng said.
"When we see big swings that means we could go from snow to thunderstorms back to snow."
He said getting snow in northern Ontario – and Sudbury in particular -- is actually normal in April, with the average snowfall for the city in 16.9 centimetres.
