City crews prepare for significant snowfall, Transit activates snow detours
The first days of spring in Calgary will be marked by the start of a significant snow event. The City is advising Calgarians to be prepared as 25 centimetres may fall by Thursday evening, with up to 40 centimetres possible by Friday.
“Crews are still on their winter shifts and are ready to respond,” states Chris Hewitt, Manager, Mobility Maintenance, “we are preparing equipment and materials and have called in additional crews to help us tackle this storm. We will continue to monitor the forecast and respond appropriately.” The City follows a Council-approved Priority snow plan. The focus during the snowfall will be keeping the most Calgarians moving, so crews will be working primarily on major routes like Crowchild Trail, Macleod Trail and Glenmore Trail. Work will include applying material to help prevent the buildup of ice and plowing through lanes on these routes.
Pedestrian infrastructure will also be a focus as the storm develops. Additional crews will be focusing on pathways, sidewalks next to City-owned property, pedestrian overpasses, priority bus stops and LRT platforms.
“Snow is going to start Tuesday evening, but we expect a significant portion of the accumulation to fall on Wednesday and Thursday,” Hewitt continues. “If you’re able to limit travel, this would be our recommendation, but if you have to travel ensure you are prepared before you head out, expect delays and take your time to get to where you need to go safely.”
Calgary Transit to activate snow detours on March 20
Calgary Transit will be activating snow detours on some routes beginning at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, March 20. These snow detours will be active to help us reduce the number of buses that get stuck and keep transit moving as smoothly as possible. We’re keeping an eye on road and weather conditions and will provide an update when the detours are lifted. A list of all bus routes that have snow detours can be viewed at calgarytransit.com/SnowDetours.
We understand that activating snow detours may increase walking distance in snowy conditions for some customers and take this into account when making the decision to activate them. Some bus routes might not be as heavily affected by snow or be cleared more quickly than others, but activating all snow detours at the same time, rather than waiting until buses get stuck, keeps transit and traffic flowing and provides predictability for people planning their commutes.
“We anticipate having these detours in place until end of service Friday,” says Stephen Tauro, Manager, Transit Service Support. “We’ll monitor the weather through the rest of the week and continue to post updates online as needed.”
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- Calgary Transit will be activating snow detours beginning at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, March 20. Transit users are encouraged to stay up-to-date with info on service status and updates by visiting calgarytransit.com/serviceupdates or following Calgary Transit on X (@CalgaryTransit).
- Calgarians can follow along with our snowplows and snow response on our live updating map.
- The City does not perform snow and ice maintenance on provincial highways (Deerfoot, Stoney Trail), this is the responsibility of Alberta Transportation and their contracted providers.
- This is a friendly reminder to clear snow off your carts and close lids. Snow in your blue cart ruins quality recyclables and makes them difficult to sort at the facility. For more cart tips, go to calgary.ca/bluecarts.