Priority Snow Plan

Snow and Ice Clearing Progress
Route types Progress (%)
Major Routes
0 - 36hrs

Crews spend the first 36 hours plowing and clearing snow on Calgary’s busiest routes

How The City’s priority-based snow plan works

The priority snow plan is The City's schedule for clearing snow from public spaces. It's approved by City Council and comes into effect once a snowfall ends city-wide. The plan sets out which roads, sidewalks, bikeways, and pathways our crews will clear, to what extent, and on which day within the seven-day plan. See below for the day-by-day priorities.

During snowfall, before the seven-day plan is activated, crews are preparing equipment and materials and working on major routes. The work on majors includes plowing snow in through lanes and applying anti-icing material to Calgary’s highest-traffic routes.

Snow plan priorities

Priority snow plan infographic
Click to enlarge image

Before and during snowfall

Crews monitor forecasts and, when necessary, will apply anti-icing materials such as brine to the road to limit the buildup of ice. During snowfall, crews focus on plowing and applying material to high volume roads like Crowchild Trail, Glenmore Trail, Macleod Trail and Memorial Drive. Crews will also monitor trouble spots like bridges, hills and important intersections across Calgary.

0 - 18 hours after snowfall stop time (major routes)

Crews spend the first 18 hours plowing and clearing snow on Calgary’s busiest routes, which include:

When the snow stops, the clock starts! With no snow accumulating, crews focus on plowing snow and applying materials (as necessary) on Calgary’s major routes. These include:

  • Calgary’s busiest major roadways. Roads with over 20,000 vehicle trips per day, such as Crowchild Trail, Memorial Drive and Macleod Trail (Please note: Deerfoot Trail and Stoney Trail are maintained by the Province).
  • Downtown roads and cycle tracks (walking and wheeling lanes)

0 – 24 hours after snowfall stop time (pedestrian infrastructure)

While our equipment is on the road, hand crews and smaller equipment are out doing important work on priority pedestrian infrastructure. Within 24 hours of snowfall stop time, The City will perform winter maintenance on:

  • Over 750 km of prioritized pathways
  • Sidewalks bordering City-owned properties
    • Please note – The City clears about 10 percent of all of Calgary’s sidewalks. Property owners and/or occupants are typically responsible for clearing snow from their adjacent sidewalks within 24 hours of snowfall stop time
  • Pedestrian bridges, vehicle bridges, LRT platforms and other public properties with high-volume foot traffic
  • Approximately 1,300 high-use bus stops

For a map of priority routes, visit the Snow and Ice Control Priority Routes map.

*The City is responsible for clearing approximately 10 per cent of Calgary sidewalks. Private property owners have the critical job of clearing the remaining 90 per cent, within 24 hours of a snowfall ending. Learn more about the bylaw requirements and escalating fines for failing to maintain a public sidewalk bordering your private property

18 - 36 hours after snowfall stop time (major community and transit routes)

When snow clearing has been completed on Calgary’s busiest roads, crews shift focus to high-volume community and transit routes. This work includes plowing driving lanes and through lanes (not curb or parking lanes) and piling it roadside. Priority 2 routes include:

  • Major Community and Transit routes. Roads with more than 5,000 vehicles per day, such as Kensington Road and Acadia Drive
  • Intersections and crosswalks controlled by traffic lights
  • Designated emergency routes (e.g. around hospitals and fire stations)
  • Bus routes
  • Roads with on-street bike lanes
  • Trouble spots

36 hours after snowfall stop time and beyond

Once crews have completed work on our major routes we shift focus onto lower volume routes and duties. Work during this stage includes:

  •  Clearing barriers of snow and ice at important intersections along major routes, this includes reducing windrows at busy crosswalks and wheelchair curb ramps for better access
  • Finishing work on major routes (turn lanes, on/off ramps)
  • Levelling ruts in residential areas as needed. 
    Please note, The City does not typically clear snow from residential streets and works to maintain a hard snow pack.
  • Clearing bus stops and designated routes that connect to community and transit routes. 

Road Conditions map

View the Road Conditions map to see which roads have been plowed in real time.

Road Conditions Map

Priority 1 and 2 Routes

Check the Priority Routes map for roads designated for priority snow clearing.

Snow Priority Routes Map

Pathway and bikeway snow clearing

To see pathways and bikeways cleared of snow, visit the pathway and bikeway snow clearing map.

Pathway & Bikeway Snow Clearing Map

Deerfoot Trail and Stoney Trail

Deerfoot Trail and Stoney Trail are maintained by the Province of Alberta. Visit Alberta’s Road Reports site for current conditions.

511 Alberta Road Report

Report snow and ice concerns

Report public safety or access issues caused by snow and ice.

Report Snow and Ice Concerns

Related information

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