Are we getting better?

I’ve been meaning to post a link to the video Sharon Roseman and I made about sidewalk snow clearing. Most of the filming was done in 2014, just before the KPMG Review of Winter Maintenance Services in St. John’s, so the film turned out to be kind of a benchmark for what things were like before the city started implementing the recommendations of the review. It also documents the activism that led to the review. Here it is:

Honk If You Want Me Off the Road from Elizabeth Yeoman on Vimeo.

And here are a few of the review recommendations, mainly the ones relating to pedestrian needs, and my brief comments (in blue) on how they’ve been implemented since the review:

-Sidewalk service levels should be improved by starting earlier and focusing on high priority sidewalks.

(Much of the recent $150,000 increase in the snowclearing budget was to allow for an earlier start to sidewalk clearing. Snow removal crews are also working seven days a week instead of five. My own experience is that this is happening after lighter snowfalls but not so much after heavier ones, when drivers of motor vehicles are still given priority over pedestrians. We need much more discussion of what the word “priority” means.)

-Snow removal should start earlier during snowfalls to improve sidewalk and road conditions, using privately hired equipment (trucks and loaders) to expand capacity during major events.

(This year an additional 11 km of sidewalk snow clearing is being done by sub-contractors, which is intended to help city staff get the rest cleared sooner.)

-Seasonal workers should be engaged for a longer season (18 or 19 weeks, instead of 16 weeks) to provide resources for early or late storms; the city should also allow more time for training early in the season.

(If this has been done, I haven’t seen it published anywhere.)

-The training program should be expanded, focusing on improving effectiveness, reducing equipment damage and improving supervisory skills with three new seasonal trainer positions.

(I haven’t seen any information published on this either. What I have seen is a lot of “duelling plows,” as Sonja Boon calls them, where the street plow drivers plow the sidewalks back in after the sidewalk plow drivers have been through. Surely this could be avoided with better training.)

-A revised protocol for handling 311 calls on snow issues should be developed and external communications improved.

There’s a new app that allows people to report in detail on snow issues. You can also still call or email them. Anecdotally, I’ve heard that response is good and that has been my experience. But should we really have to be contacting the city as often as we do just to be able to get around safely?

-Plan for a new snow dumping site besides in St. John’s harbour, to minimize traffic congestion and for environmental reasons.

This has not been done as has recently been highlighted in the media.

I only know what I’ve read in the media or experienced myself so it would be great to hear from others. Do you have information I am missing? And what have your experiences been like as you move around the city?