MADISON, Wis. — Every time a significant snowfall event occurs, Bryan Johnson with the City of Madison Streets Division fields dozens of calls and complaints asking about the same things:
- When is my street going to be plowed?
- Why do the plows push snow into my driveway?
“Sometimes we get them like hours before we even begin a plowing operation,” Johnson said. “It’s not to say that we’re perfect. Mistakes happen. So I don’t want to give the impression that people shouldn’t contact us about things. There’s things we need to know. There’s vision hazards in places, or maybe we didn’t get the snow far enough back to the curb, or maybe something was forgotten. It’s OK to let us know, just give us some time.”
Johnson said another common question is, “Why does my street still have snow on it, but a couple streets down it’s clear?”
“The reason why some streets are completely free from snow and others aren’t is salt and we are not going to salt every street in Madison,” he said. “We just can’t do that because of the effect on the environment.”
Johnson said when it’s snowing, the City crews are working around the clock to make sure the roads are safe, but when they’re taking so many calls asking the same questions and hearing the same complaints, it can delay the process. Johnson suggests that before calling, visit the City’s winter website where your questions are likely answered.
Residents can also sign up to receive email and text alerts with plow updates or snow emergency updates.
“It’s more like look before you leap,” Johnson said. “Make sure you understand what’s going on before we jump to complaints.”
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