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A Resident's Guide to Winter Snow & Ice Operations and Procedures
The Lenox Department of Public Works is pleased to issue "A Resident's Guide to
Winter Snow & Ice Operations and Procedures ". The intent of this pamphlet is to
advise Lenox residents of the Highway Division's winter snow plowing and antiicing/
de-icing objectives and to obtain your assistance so that Lenox's roads can be
restored to "normal conditions" as promptly and efficiently as possible after a
storm. Your cooperation is essential for the Department of Public Works to achieve
this objective. With your assistance and patience, we will be able to provide you
with the important functions of our winter maintenance operation i.e., get roads
open, keep traffic flowing, and restore roads to safe traveling conditions quickly.
We thank you for your anticipated cooperation.
SNOWPLOWING OPERATIONS
The following is a general description of the Department of Public Work's snow &
ice operational plan. As you are aware each storm is different, but we will try to
follow our snow & ice operations policy as closely as possible.
Our SNOW & ICE PROGRAM entails three (3) steps:
1. Anti-icing operation
2. Plowing operation
3. De-icing operation
Anti-icing Operation
As the snow storm begins, the DPW initiates its anti-icing operations by spreading
salt and liquid calcium chloride when necessary, first on the primary and collector
roads, hills and school bus routes and last all local roads. This serves two main
purposes: it prevents the snow from bonding and compacting to the pavement and
it keeps traffic moving. When fully operational, five (5) anti-icing/de-icing
material spreader trucks are used for this operation.
Plowing Operation
Plowing operations begin when a minimum of two (2) to three (3) inches of snow
accumulates on the ground. The Department of Public Works has ten (10) vehicles
equipped to plow snow. The main objective during the snow storm is to keep roads
passable. At the end of the storm, the plows begin to push back the amassed snow
to the edge of the pavement. Residents may want to wait until the roads have been
plowed clear before clearing the entrance of their driveways. If snow banks need to
be pushed back further because of heavy build-up on the road side, we will attempt
to do so following a storm given the availability of manpower and equipment.
Town By-Law Chapter VII, Section 6: “The owner of premises, and his tenant or
licensee, shall as soon as practical after any snowfall or ice storm, cause all public
sidewalks abutting said premises to be cleared reasonably of such snow and/or ice,
and said sidewalk to be made usable by the public with as much safety as is
possible under the circumstances.”
Town By-Law Chapter VII, Section 7: “No person other than an employee in the
service of the public works department or any employee in the service of an
independent contractor acting for the public works department shall pile, push, or
plow snow or ice onto a Town way so as to impede the flow of traffic on such way.
Whoever violates this section shall be punished by a fine of not more than one
hundred dollars.”
The Department of Public Works staff, are well trained and dedicated to plow
"around the clock", if necessary, keeping the roads open and passable. If a plow
truck is riding with its plow up, it may be returning to the garage for fuel or repairs.
Please be advised that Route 7/20 is maintained by the Massachusetts Highway
Department and not by the Town of Lenox DPW.
Residents should not be alarmed if they do not see their road plowed during the
early part of a snow storm. The DPW follows an assigned route plan. Please be
patient, all Town-owned roads will eventually be plowed.
Another area of concern is mailboxes. We do not "deliberately" knock over or
damage mailboxes. Remember, anything installed within the Town's right-of-way
(i.e., fence, mailbox, etc.) is placed there at the owner's risk. Hence, residents are
encouraged to place mailboxes at the maximum allowable distance from the
pavement. Please be aware that the Department of Public Works does not
reimburse for mailboxes damaged during snow plowing operations. Mailboxes
should be inspected regularly to insure that they are secured properly and that
wood posts are not rotted out.
An additional obstacle to our snow and ice operation is the basketball hoops that
are placed in town roads. These hoops are difficult to see when it is snowing and
are capable of snagging and damaging our snow plow trucks. In the event that this
happens and damage is caused to the vehicle, the owner will be held responsible
for the damage. So please take the time to remove the hoops during the winter
months. Your cooperation is greatly appreciated.
De-icing Operation
Once the snowfall has stopped and all roads are clear of snow, post storm de-icing
operations commence. All roads are again treated with salt and liquid calcium
chloride when necessary to improve traction and melt remaining snow and ice.
(exception to this policy will only be when material supplies are extremely low and
main roads, hills and bus routes become more of a priority than secondary roads).
Residents Can Help:
Residents can assist the Department of Public Works during a snow storm by
heeding these suggestions:
1. Observe all winter parking bans
2. Reduce your speed and drive cautiously.
3. Remain off the streets during snow storms unless absolutely necessary.
4. Do not allow children to make "snow forts" at edge of roads.
5. Do not plow, blow or throw snow back into the road.
6. Before final clean-up of your driveway, check the road. If it does not appear to
be widened out, a plow will most likely be returning to plow again, and may push
snow back into the entrance of your driveway. Doing this might keep you from
clearing your driveway more than once.
7. During plowing operations some lawn area located within the town’s right of
way will inadvertently be damaged. To help keep this from occurring, we
recommend that you maintain reflectors at the edge of your lawn as a guide for our
plow operators.
8. Finally, please have patience. Snow plowing is a time consuming and arduous
job covering approximately 50 miles of roads and 7 miles of sidewalk. Some
residents will have their road plowed first and some will be last, but at the end all
town roads will be cleared.
The Department of Public Works is devoted to providing the residents of Lenox
with dependable snow and ice operation in the shortest and most efficient time
possible. With your cooperation we will all benefit during a snow storm. If you
have any questions concerning the snow and ice operations as it is explained,
please call (413) 637-5525 or visit our web site at www.townoflenox.com. We will
try to assist you in any way possible.
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