Richmond covered nearly 23,000 kilometres clearing and treating the city’s roads during the recent snowfall.
According to the city, crews worked “around the clock in back-to-back 12 hour shifts” in order to keep pace with weather conditions.
Between Jan. 10 to Jan. 18, crews covered 22,818 kilometres while clearing and treating Richmond’s roads and dispersed 1,434 tonnes of salt — nearly equal the weight of three Airbus A380 aircraft.
The city said it also used 746,000 litres — over 4,950 average bath tubs — of salt brine.
A spokesperson for the city previously told the Richmond News that this year’s ice and snow removal budget is around $1.1 million. The News has asked the city how much of that budget was spent during the recent snowfall.
“While the January 2020 snow event saw long hours and a seemingly endless war against Mother Nature, the City of Richmond is aware of the challenges winter weather brings to residents, their daily activities and safety,” said Mayor Malcolm Brodie in a press release.
“That’s why the city has a snow strategy in place to focus on keeping main roads and major transit routes open as a priority, with arterial roads and residential streets to follow.”
Between Jan. 10 to Jan. 18, Richmond received 34.6 centimetres of snow, according to data from YVR’s weather monitoring station.
This, according to the data, is higher than the annual snowfall each winter since 2008, with one exception being 2017, when Richmond saw a total of 43.4 centimetres throughout that year.
“The city appreciates and thanks residents for doing their part to shovel sidewalks and keep street storm drains clear,” reads the city’s release.
“They also recognize the patience many showed while snow clearing occurred, and for following and providing input on the regular weather updates and safety information posted through the city’s Twitter and Facebook feeds.”
