INFO-Towing

By Dan Laxer
The Suburban

Communities and boroughs in Montreal have all announced in the past few days that regular garbage and recycling collection is resuming this week.

To facilitate snow removal operations, collections had been cancelled to allow crews to get through the 74 centimetres of snow that had fallen over the period of a week.

By the end of last Friday afternoon streets like Draper Avenue in NDG, between Cote Saint Luc Road and Somerled in the Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce borough, remained unplowed. If parents and buses dropping off and picking up students at Royal Vale School had trouble making it through, will collection crews even bother?

There are about 3,000 snow removal crews and 2,500 trucks and machines facing about 11,000 kilometres of roads and sidewalks that need clearing, only about 35% of which had been cleared by the end of Friday, after which crews took a mandatory break.

Snow removal does take priority, however, over waste collections. So while many communities had posted notices online saying that collections were, in fact, resuming on Monday (February 24), the city of Montreal is advising residents to verify the collection schedules in their areas for updates.

People are still being reminded to make sure bins are where they are supposed to be, and not blocking the way for snow removal vehicles, and that they obey parking restrictions where applicable. Check the Montreal Snow Info app for real-time updates. Track snow removal operations via the INFO-Towing system. Consult free parking maps to find available parking during snow removal. And subscribe to email and text alerts. n