Complaints mount over city snow removal
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At the height of Wednesday afternoon's snowstorm, PennDOT was filling salt trucks as soon as they pulled into the salt storage area at the Wexford interchange of I-79 in Franklin Park. -
Birds sit on a fence on a cold day in the Hill District.
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With snow in the forecast for today, city of Pittsburgh crews were replenishing depleted salt piles yesterday, and hoping they could disprove the findings of an audit and the evidence from a storm that brought their effectiveness into question.
"We're not out of salt," said Rob Kaczorowski, city Department of Public Works deputy director of operations, conceding that there were shortages in some areas.
"We've run about 48 hours straight," he added, and the city's supplier was "supposed to be delivering [Wednesday], but conditions were so hazardous, they refused to deliver."
Yesterday, city salt piles in South Oakland, Hazelwood, Homewood and Knoxville were down to their last truckloads, but some were getting deliveries from supply contractor American Rock Salt Co.
They may need it. National Weather Service Meteorologist Roger Stairs said the area may get an inch of snow "right in time for rush hour" this morning, and another inch after that. "It doesn't take much to cause a mess."
The snow-and-ice mess Tuesday night and Wednesday was "one of the most difficult storms I've encountered," said Mr. Kaczorowski, a 28-year veteran of the department. "The guys right now should be commended on the job they did" clearing streets.
Releasing an audit of street maintenance Wednesday, City Controller Michael Lamb questioned the city's execution of its snow clearance plan.
That plan focuses on the use of 84 vehicles -- half of them smaller trucks to improve flexibility -- and running 12-hour shifts. It involves simultaneously clearing primary and secondary streets, and Mr. Kaczorowski said it has allowed crews to hit as many roads in 24 hours as they used to hit in 36 hours.
Councilman Bruce Kraus said South Side Flats side streets were still icy yesterday morning, but by afternoon, as he toured the Hilltop neighborhoods with Mr. Kaczorowski, roads were "looking great up here," he said.
Still, the storm and the audit seemed to crystallize concerns about city snow clearance.
"What I'm hearing from my district is, 'What happened to the snow plowing and the salting?'" said Council President Doug Shields. "The job is not getting done. Look at the streets. It speaks for itself."
Drivers complained about the roads yesterday.
"I made the mistake of coming through the Oak Hill housing development [in the Hill District] where they were horrible," said Dianne Drish, who works at the Petersen Events Center in Oakland. "Upon coming to the main streets such as Darragh and Robinson, they were pretty good."
"It's horrible," said Mike Davin, a professional truck driver who lives in Brookline and makes five runs daily from Bay Valley Foods locations in the North Side and Cheswick. "I almost slid into the Heinz Lofts" Wednesday, and even mid-day yesterday he encountered icy roads in Beechview.
First Published January 30, 2009 12:00 am
