Submitted
Carmel city officials say they are committed to making bicycle riding, running and walking year-round activities on the city’s trails, and multi-use paths for both transportation and recreation.
During the winter months, after a heavy snowfall of three inches or more, the City puts in motion a plan to plow local streets immediately for the safety of motorists, then turns its attention to plowing local trails like the Monon Greenway and Hagan Burke Trail along with many miles of multi-use paths along roadways.
Here is how this takes place after a heavy snow:
Streets
When up to three inches of snow has fallen, the Carmel Street Department treats and plows main thoroughfares such as Range Line Road, Main Street, Carmel Drive, Gray Road, Spring Mill Road, 116th Street and others that are used heavily for commuting to work or school.
After that, the Street Department focuses on secondary streets such as Brookshire Parkway, Lakeshore Drive, Adios Pass, Avian Way, etc.
When more than three inches of snow has fallen, the main and secondary streets are salted and plowed as the snow falls. Smaller streets and cul-de-sacs within subdivisions are plowed when more than four inches of snow has accumulated. After the snowfall ends, the Street Department begins a complete city plow that includes every street getting plowed and/or treated with salt as needed, especially on bridges, hills, roundabouts and intersections.
It takes about 24 hours to plow all 560 miles of roadway and the City’s 1,100 cul-de-sacs. The Street Department has a fleet of more than 60 snow plows and vehicles that can be converted to plows. In addition to the Street Department workers, the plan calls for staff members from other city departments to be trained to help.
Paths
Paths that are located along city roadways are cleared by the Carmel Street Department as soon as possible after city streets are cleared. In most cases, they are cleared along with the adjacent section of roadway.
It should be noted that the Street Department does not clear trails outside of normal business hours, and depending on the depth of snow, it may take up to two to three days to clear the paths. Additionally, in some areas, trails are not cleared on both sides of the roadway.
Trails
Trails and greenways are cleared by the Carmel Clay Parks Department, which begins clearing operations shortly after the end of the snowfall. Trails in Carmel are cleared but are not salted. No salt is used due to the threat of killing vegetation along the trails, causing injury to the paws of pets and the potential damage to the asphalt.