Port Moody residents are going to have to work harder and quicker to clear their sidewalks if and when the snow flies.
At last Tuesday’s meeting, city council approved an amendment to its sidewalk and boulevard maintenance bylaw to require property owners along priority pedestrian commuter routes to clear their walks of accumulated snow and ice by 10 a.m. every day.
Those routes include:
• both sides of St. Johns Street and Barnet Highway from Queens Street to the Coquitlam border;
• the south side of Clarke Street from Queens to Moody streets;
• both sides of Dewdney Trunk Road from St. Johns to Viewmount Drive;
• both sides of Moody Street from Clarke to St. Johns;
• the eastbound side of Hugh Street from Spring Street to St. Johns;
• both sides of Williams Street from Spring to St. Johns;
• both sides of Murray Street and Guildford Way, from Klahanie Drive to Ungless Way;
• both sides of Ioco Road from Ungless to the Barnet Highway and the south side of Ungless from Ioco Road to Guildford Way.
Previously, property owners throughout the city had 24 hours to clear their sidewalks after a snowfall, and that will still be the case outside of the priority pedestrian routes.
A staff report presented to council said the 24-hour time frame “proved problematic” during last winter’s snow and ice storms, and “resulted in mobility challenges for pedestrians” along arterial routes used to reach transit.
Failure to clear walks along those busy routes will result in a $100 fine for the first offence (reduced to $20 if it’s paid within 30 days), $150 for a second offence and $500 for subsequent offences. If the city ends up clearing the walk, the property owner could also be billed for those costs.
