GTA municipalities gearing up for Sunday snowstorm

Municipalities in the Greater Toronto Area are preparing ahead of Sunday’s snowstorm, for which Environment Canada has now issued an orange winter storm watch.

The orange alert means Toronto, York, Durham and Peel regions could see between 20 and 40 centimetres of snow this weekend. Halton region is under a yellow watch for the winter storm, which could dump up to 30 centimetres of snow.

Here’s how different municipalities are gearing up for Sunday’s blizzard.

Toronto

Salt domes are restocked and crews are pre-salting Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) routes on hills, said the City of Toronto in a news release Saturday.

Surge staff and give new sidewalk plows are set to be deployed to assist with snow clearing. While city maintenance garages will be staffed around the clock to ensure faster repairs on snow equipment.

The city said there's increased staffing for the 311 line to handle higher volumes of snow-related service requests. 

If required, the city is ready to enact its major snow event response plan if snowfall accumulates to 25 centimetres or more.

Torontonians are being encouraged to avoid non-essential travel, stock up on groceries, and watch for city updates and snow route parking restrictions.

Toronto's five warming centres and two surge spaces will remain open at the following locations:

• 136 Spadina Road.
• 81 Elizabeth Road.
• 12 Holmes Avenue.
• 885 Scarborough Golf Club Road.
• 349 Cecil Street.
• Cecil Community Centre, 85 Cecil Sttreet.
• Jimmie Simpson Recreation Centre, 870 Queen Street E.

There will also be extended hours at city-funded daytime drop-in programs across Toronto.

Enhanced street outreach teams will also continue to conduct wellness checks and distribute supplies, such as blankets, warm clothes and sleeping bags, the city said in a social media post Saturday. 

In a social media post Saturday, the TTC said it would be cancelling a planned subway closure on Sunday for Line 1 between St George and St Andrew stations due to the storm.

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Environment and Climate Change Canada has changed the way it classifies its weather warnings. CBC Meteorologist Ryan Snoddon explains it's all about risk and impact.

Vaughan

In a news release Saturday, Vaughan said it has more than 230 pieces of winter maintenance equipment ready to tackle the storm.

“Whether we’re removing snow and ice from roads, paths, sidewalks or windrows, our crews work hard to ensure everyone can travel safely throughout Vaughan,” the city said.

The city said it would be preparing roads by spraying brine, a solution of rock salt and water, on surfaces to prevent the formation of black ice.

“We aim to salt municipal main roads within four hours after snowfall ends, and residential roads, including narrower streets like laneways behind townhomes, are salted within 12 hours,” the city said.

Plowing is set to begin as soon as five centimetres of snow accumulate on main roads to keep the way clear for emergency and transit vehicles.

Brampton

Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown said the city has over 360 snow removal vehicles and crews prepared to work around the clock.

“It's a busy, busy task to deal with a big winter event,” he told CBC Toronto Saturday. “But rest assured, we're working away at it.”

Brown said fines have increased for vehicles obstructing snowplows: First offence tickets will be $250, second offence tickets will be $500 and third offence tickets will be $750.

He said the city has towed more than 300 cars and handed out over $1 million in tickets since December.

“It's going to be financially punitive if you don't take the appropriate steps. So please move your car,” he said.

Mississauga

Mississauga City Coun. Dipika Damerla said the city’s first priority on Sunday will be to ensure main streets are plowed.

“We're planning to do two passes because of the amount of snow that's coming,” she told CBC Toronto Saturday. 

However, garbage day for some areas is on Monday, meaning priorities will need to be shifted to ensure garbage trucks can use secondary routes, Damerla said. She added the city will also need to ensure students can make it to school and bus stops.

“Everybody wants everything done at the same time. And quite frankly, all of them are priorities,” Damerla said. “One of the things I will be asking my residents is to be a bit patient.”

She said the city has issued about 2,400 tickets to parked cars for blocking snowplows this winter.

“I just want to remind everybody that our snow plows actually have cameras and if that camera catches your car blocking the snow plow, it goes straight to our parking enforcement and you will get a ticket,” Damerla said.

She added the city has a no turn-away policy at shelters and will open stay the night programs and drop-in centres for those in need.