There was some question as to why Minneapolis had not declared a snow emergency until this morning. Minneapolis City plows worked continuously throughout last night's snow storm, putting into effect a 24-7 plowing schedule the City uses during periods of heavy snow.
With ongoing, blizzard-like conditions and a forecast for snow throughout the night Thursday and into early Friday, it was premature for the City of Minneapolis to put parking restrictions in place until this evening. However, crews will be plowing, sanding and salting streets until the snow emergency declaration takes effect. Unlike other cities, where many cars were towed last night, residents were not required to move their vehicles for this operation in the middle of the storm. Also, many alleys were plowed last night and that operation continued until this morning. Parking restrictions will however take effect tonight (see below). Here are the details of the upcoming snow emergency. Snow emergency parking restrictions will go into affect in the City of Minneapolis beginning at 9:00 p.m. TOMORROW, FRIDAY, March 15, 2002. Officials today declared a Snow Emergency in the City of Minneapolis. To ensure that roadways remain safe and clear for drivers and emergency vehicles during the winter season, Minneapolis residents and visitors must follow Snow Emergency parking regulations so that the City of Minneapolis can effectively plow all City streets from curb to curb. Snow Emergency information is available by: * Calling 612-348-SNOW * Checking the City's Web site: www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us. * Reviewing the Snow Emergency brochure that was mailed in the 2002 Minneapolis Calendar. * Calling the Spanish Snow Hotline at 612-673-3819. * Calling the Somali Snow Hotline at 612-673-2141 * Watching Minneapolis Cable Channel 14 (34 in non-upgraded cable areas). * * On average, Minneapolis receives 50 inches of snowfall each winter. And March remains the snowiest month of the year. Whenever it snows, Minneapolis' crews are working throughout the city to ensure that streets are sanded and plowed. But when a significant amount of snow falls, the City of Minneapolis declares Snow Emergencies to remove accumulating snow on City streets from curb to curb. Snow Emergencies are a set of predefined parking regulations that allow crews to completely clear streets of accumulating snow. * * A few facts about Snowplowing in Minneapolis: * There are more than 1,100 miles of streets and parkways in Minneapolis. * Streets are plowed in two directions and many streets have multiple lanes. There are 3,200 "lane miles" in Minneapolis ... set end to end, those lane miles would stretch from Minneapolis to Seattle and back! * Minneapolis is able to mobilize up to 100 plowing vehicles to keep City streets and alleys cleared. * Friday, Mar. 15, 2002 is the FIRST DAY of a Minneapolis Snow Emergency. Beginning at 9 p.m. tonight, parking is prohibited on BOTH SIDES of ALL SNOW EMERGENCY ROUTES until 8 a.m. tomorrow (Saturday, Mar. 16, 2002). * * Saturday, Mar. 16, 2002 will be the SECOND DAY of a Minneapolis Snow Emergency. Parking is prohibited on the ODD NUMBERED SIDE of NON SNOW EMERGENCY ROUTES and on BOTH SIDES of PARKWAYS from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m. After 8 p.m. on Mar. 16, Minneapolis residents should move vehicles from the even side of non Snow Emergency routes to the odd side. * * Sunday, Mar. 17, 2002 will be the THIRD DAY of a Minneapolis Snow Emergency. Parking will be prohibited on the EVEN NUMBERED SIDE of NON SNOW EMERGENCY ROUTES from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m. After 8 p.m. on Sunday, Mar. 17, Minneapolis residents may park vehicles on both sides of all streets until the next Snow Emergency, unless posted otherwise, or unless Minneapolis imposes winter parking restrictions. - End - Vaman Pai Communications Department City of Minneapolis 350 South 5th Street - Room 301M Minneapolis, MN 55415-1300 612.673.2123 952.365.6588 (pager) [EMAIL PROTECTED] "Don't worry about the world coming to an end today. It's already tomorrow in Australia." ----- Charles Schultz ----- _______________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A Civil City Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest option, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
