Snow Removal Updates
This week, we’re highlighting Tuesday’s 1:00pm Environmental Quality & Public Works Committee presentation about updates to Lexington’s snow removal plans. This EQPW Committee presentation will be given by the Commissioner of Environmental Quality & Public Works, Nancy Albright.
Why is this important?
Keeping roads clear of snow in the winter is an essential role of city government, through the Division of Streets and Roads.
With a tight LFUCG budget, precise financial planning for any essential city service is critical. This is especially true for a service that is entirely dependent on the weather.
Lexington is in one of the more unpredictable areas of the country for the weather, and climate change is making the prediction of winter weather more difficult.
The unpredictability resulting from climate change is dramatically impacting community planning.
What’s different about salting this year?
The city’s expenses for salt purchasing have significantly increased in recent years. In FY 2018, the City of Lexington purchased salt for $58.32 per ton - in FY 2020, salt’s cost had risen to over $90 per ton.
While there is no reason for this increase in salt cost per ton included in the presentation, a 2019 report in Snow Magazine attributes the rising price of salt in the Central US to the lack of local production. Much of America’s salt comes from the Middle East and Egypt, and with no easy port access, there is less competition to drive down salt costs.
The city did not include additional salt purchasing funding in this year’s budget, meaning the city is stuck with the current salt supplies. If the need outpaces the current store, any budget amendments to allow more salt could harm the city’s financial outlook.
Lexington has 5,800 tons of salt in storage, more than was used in FY19 (4,215 tons) or FY20 (1,745 tons). With that said, increasingly unpredictable weather patterns make it difficult to predict how much salt the city needs for the year. In FY 2018, for instance, the city purchased 10,306 tons of salt.
This year, the city has projected the cost of salt for any additional salt purchase to be $68.90 per ton, attributed to a reverse auction with the Kentucky Association of Counties.
What about snow plowing?
Lexington’s snow plowing plan operates under three separate services levels, which correlate to the snow event accumulation.
Under the lowest level (Level 1, which is 1” - 4” of accumulation), the city plan calls for the plowing of 1,174 of lane miles of road within 36 hours of the end of a snow event. These essential roads include the city’s main arteries (any of the “spokes” heading out of downtown), major connecting roads, and some residential roads.
The two higher levels (Level 2, 5” to 8”; Level 3; 8” +) call for the plowing of most residential roads, and in the worst cases, every road the city can access.
The city extended the time in which snowplows must clear roads from 24 hours to 36 hours in 2017, after eliminating a contractor’s contract the year before.
Residents can track the city’s snowplows using an online tool on the City of Lexington website.
And the sidewalks?
Sidewalk clearing is mostly the responsibility of property owners in Fayette County.
A combination of staff from three different city government divisions is responsible for clearing 81 miles of sidewalks that are owned or operated by LFUCG.
The city also clears many downtown sidewalks during and after snow events.
In sum:
Environmental Quality & Public Works Committee
Tuesday, October 6, 2020 | 1pm