Common Council

Citywide Plowing Starts at 12:00pm Today, March 25, 2023

All City of Madison Streets will be plowed beginning at 12:00pm Saturday, March 25, 2023.  Residents should choose off-street parking options if possible through the day to assist with plowing operations.  Travel through Madison will be very difficult at best.  This is a wet, dense, and deep snowfall.

Since the snows started, Streets Division crews have been circling through the salt routes plowing and applying salt as needed.  Crews will continue on those routes until the storm ends, and the snow on these main thoroughfares are plowed back to the curb.

At noon today, approximately 150 pieces of equipment will be dispatched to plow every street in the City of Madison.  The entire plowing force includes vehicles from the City of Madison fleet plus heavy equipment contractors. 

Please choose off-street parking options throughout the day, and remove any boats, trailers, or similar vehicle attachments from the road.  By removing these obstructions, it will create an open lane of travel for snowplowing, and will help crews clear the snow completely from the road.

Citywide plowing can take 12 to 14 hours to complete, however, plowing tends to be slower with deeper and heavier snow as plows must drive slower.

Forecasts are now showing totals of close to 8 inches of snow by the time this storm ends around noon today. And this is a very wet and dense snow. 

Due to the type of snow this is, and how much we received, plowing each street curb-to-curb may result in significant windrows of snow across driveways, crosswalk ramps, and other gaps along the curb. Wet snow gathers onto itself more on the plow, and when it falls off into driveways, it can create larger boulder-like blockages.  This is an unfortunate and unavoidable part of snowplowing operations.  Plows can only push snow from the road to the curb.  As they pass gaps along the curb, snow falls from the plow into the spaces.  Operators are not deliberately directing snow into those places. 

Considering the density of this snow, it will be difficult to shovel especially after pushed from the road to the curb.  Please use caution when clearing snow from your walks, driveways, and in front of mailboxes.  If you have the capability, consider helping your neighbors who may be seniors, or have disabilities, or otherwise struggle to move this kind of snow.

Travel on roadways will be very challenging for the entirety of Saturday, so you must make good choices if you absolutely must commute through Madison today.  The wet dense snow on top of warm pavement has made for very slippery roadways, including the main thoroughfares as snow is covering over the work already done by plows.  Residential areas are likely to have deep snow on them until they are plowed curb-to-curb.

If you venture forth onto the roads for trips that cannot wait, you may encounter snowplowing vehicles. Remember to give them plenty of space so they can do their work safely and efficiently.  Do not follow them too closely.  Do not dart in front of them.  Also, later today once the citywide plowing commences, you may encounter temporary blockages across intersections. This is normal during plowing operations as crews circle through neighborhoods to push all of the snow from the roads to the curb.

Future updates about snowplowing operations can be found at www.cityofmadison.com/Winter