Snow Update: Feb. 28, 2007

Madison - Cleanup efforts related to the weekend storm, and preparations for the upcoming weather event, continue in the City of Madison. Top city staff from a number of agencies met again this morning with the mayor's office to review current issues and coordinate cleanup work. Streets Department crews were out yesterday and last night clearing snow piles away from intersections and corners to improve visibility. They are continuing that work today, and are also working to widen narrow travel lanes, and clear crosswalks and bus shelters. In addition, one automated roadpatcher machine and two streets crews are out on each side of Madison filling potholes caused by the snow and plowing. City Engineering continues to clear storm inlets in the streets, so that melting snow and the coming rains do not cause any localized flooding. As of this morning, 28 reports of storm inlets being plugged have been reported. Engineering is sending crews out on a complaint basis, but also systematically working on low lying areas of the city to make sure key storm inlets are free of snow. To report flooding, contact City Engineering at (608) 266-4430 or through the Report-a-Problem website, http://www.cityofmadison.com/reportAProblem. Residents and businesses with questions or concerns about their street conditions (including both snow removal and potholes) can contact the Streets Department at 246-4532 (East), or 266-4681 (West), or via the Report-a-Problem website. Localized flooding is a possibility in the coming days, based on current weather forecasts. The latest forecasts predict as much as two inches of rainfall through the end of the week. During that time, City Engineering, Streets and Parks staff will continue to focus on unplugging storm inlets. Street crews will also be on call for sand operations as there may be rain freezing on streets during the evening/over-night hours, though current forecasts call for warmer temperatures. Putting the recent storm in context, Madison's average annual snowfall is about 48 inches; the last five weeks alone have seen 43 inches of snow. In addition to approximately 90 City trucks, 70 private trucks were contracted with to assist with the cleanup. Parks and City Engineering staff are also in the field, assisting in various aspects of cleanup. The City of Madison includes some 750 miles of streets, and 1700 total lane miles. "City workers are making progress cleaning up from the historic weekend storm, but the next upcoming weather system will bring new challenges," said Mayor Dave Cieslewicz. "Please continue to contact us about issues related to flooding and street conditions, so we can address them as quickly as possible."

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