Omaha Forums

StreetsOfOmaha wrote:

Given the tall mounds of snow, pedestrians and joggers forced into the street should be extra wary.

Excuse me! More like the |expletive| car drivers need to be extra |expletive| wary they don't hit and kill a pedestrian since they have nowhere else to walk but in the street.

Oh boy. Here we go again.

Bosco55David wrote:

StreetsOfOmaha wrote:

Given the tall mounds of snow, pedestrians and joggers forced into the street should be extra wary.

Excuse me! More like the |expletive| car drivers need to be extra |expletive| wary they don't hit and kill a pedestrian since they have nowhere else to walk but in the street.

Oh boy. Here we go again.

Yeah, I think he's having a rough night tonight.

Driving around town the last couple of days the main streets are ok.  There are several places I came to where the two lanes on Sorensen Parkway and also north 72nd became one lane real quickly so if you were in the outside lane you had to quickly move over if there was room.

Also many corners have snow piled high and make it difficult to see without sticking the nose of your car way out.

If we get more snow soon.... yikes

As I rode the bus to work today, I was delighted to notice that the riverfront trail along Riverfront Drive has been completely cleared, and not only that, the connection points that cross Riverfront Drive have been cleared! After the storm before this last one, they remained blocked by all the snow that the plows piled up.

As of this morning, my residential street still hadn't been cleared.

SO, I would go down to an "F", but since I'm feeling happy about seeing that the trail was cleared, I'll leave it at a "D" for now.  :D

I give them an A+ again this storm.  My 90th and Fort area street was plowed by the city Saturday Night, Sunday Night and Monday Night!  Three times in three days.  You can see bare pavement now.

You know, if people would move their cars before the snow hits, the removal would happen much quicker.

S33 wrote:You know, if people would move their cars before the snow hits, the removal would happen much quicker.

It's not always that easy. I know on my street people have to park on the street with no where else to park without getting towed.

Haha. Yeah, exactly. Where are they supposed to move their cars? I suppose they just CHOOSE to park on the street even thought they have a driveway or an enclosed garage that they could use.  :lol:

This is but one MORE flaw of the automobile. They litter our streets and create a DISASTER when it's time to clear the snow.

Anyway, I found this on the Omaha Bikes blog (formerly "Bike Omaha")

It is the Parks Department that plows the trails.  Budget limitations are an issue, as 6 full time positions had to be eliminated by the end of 2009.   Here are the priorities for plowing:

The 15 Community Centers
City Right of Ways (sidewalks) that are near schools
Overpasses near schools
Lewis and Clark Landing and the Riverfront
Major Trails
Park Trails

I did pass along what I considered to be the main message that "you all" would want me to say:  the major trails are used not only for recreation, but also for transportation.

I think Omaha should have a Modified Snow Emergency.  May it a 2 day snow emergency where as the first day you park on the north and east sides of the road and day 2 of the emergency you park on the south side of the road.  Noon one day to noon the next day giving the most people an opportunity to move.

I'm guessing about 10% of the cars parked in the streets of east Omaha won't even start.

Apparently Garry Gernandt wants a odd and even day parking plan.  He said.. "You won't know if it doesn't work unless you try it".

Also coming out in the news tonight... City way over budget as far as snow removal.

About 76th and Blondo, there are some HUGE piles of snow all along the side of the road.

Brad wrote:I think Omaha should have a Modified Snow Emergency.  May it a 2 day snow emergency where as the first day you park on the north and east sides of the road and day 2 of the emergency you park on the south side of the road.  Noon one day to noon the next day giving the most people an opportunity to move.

Lincoln used to do something like that. It worked pretty well. The trick is declaring the snow emergency before cars get plowed-in.

GetUrban wrote:

Brad wrote:I think Omaha should have a Modified Snow Emergency.  May it a 2 day snow emergency where as the first day you park on the north and east sides of the road and day 2 of the emergency you park on the south side of the road.  Noon one day to noon the next day giving the most people an opportunity to move.

Lincoln used to do something like that. It worked pretty well. The trick is declaring the snow emergency before cars get plowed-in.

Yeah I think they still do that.

Brad wrote:Apparently Garry Gernandt wants a odd and even day parking plan.  He said.. "You won't know if it doesn't work unless you try it".

I think it was Ch. 6 that yesterday played a clip of the Omaha Public Works director announcing such a plan, from back in the mid-80s.  Of course, we all know who that was...

I almost can't believe the lack of planning when it comes to snow removal, and that in a city the size of Omaha that gets several feet of snow each winter, that we are still DEBATING what to do about it! It's laughable! You would think we would have figured out what works 70 years ago.

Anyway, I'm all for the plan of having people park on one side one day and the other side the other day. The problem would become ENFORCEMENT and timely warnings.

When you know you're going to get a foot of snow dumped on you in next couple of days, announce the emergency and start issuing tickets for non-compliers.

According to NOAA, Omaha's average annual snowfall is ~30 inches...

elwood wrote:According to NOAA, Omaha's average annual snowfall is ~30 inches...

With 30.7 for the month and 36.4 for the season, we only need 20 more for a record

Brad wrote:Also coming out in the news tonight... City way over budget as far as snow removal.

So what happens when there is a snow budget surplus like there has been in years past?  Does that amount rollover into the next years' fund, or does it go into the city's' general fund?

bbinks wrote:

Brad wrote:Also coming out in the news tonight... City way over budget as far as snow removal.

So what happens when there is a snow budget surplus like there has been in years past?  Does that amount rollover into the next years' fund, or does it go into the city's' general fund?

Goes into the general fund.

StreetsOfOmaha wrote:I almost can't believe the lack of planning when it comes to snow removal, and that in a city the size of Omaha that gets several feet of snow each winter, that we are still DEBATING what to do about it! It's laughable! You would think we would have figured out what works 70 years ago.

Anyway, I'm all for the plan of having people park on one side one day and the other side the other day. The problem would become ENFORCEMENT and timely warnings.

When you know you're going to get a foot of snow dumped on you in next couple of days, announce the emergency and start issuing tickets for non-compliers.

In the northeast (where I moved from, and where a lot of snow is very common), almost every city does even/odd parking during snow emergencies. The way the cities enforce even/odd is towing- if they go to plow a street and a car is on the wrong side, it is towed so the city crews can get the job done. Usually there are 4 or 5 tow trucks with the snow removal crews to remove any cars in the way- basically if someone can't figure out the even/odd parking its their problem, not the city's. I'm really surprised Omaha hasn't taken this position since it would allow them to get the streets cleared a lot faster than waiting for people to move their cars. They might even get some additional revenue from people who don't follow even/odd parking and get towed.

That's exactly what I'm talking about.

Sioux Falls has three zones in the city for cleaning streets of snow.  If you don't move your car -- it gets ticketed and towed.

http://www.siouxfalls.org/~/media/docum ... 01309.ashx

Sioux Falls police have issued 415 tickets and towed 117 cars since a snow removal emergency was declared last week.

Most of the towed cars were first issued $35 snow removal tickets, police spokesman Sam Clemens said.

Parked cars plowed in and not moved are subject to tickets, then towing. Officers are continuing to patrol for unmoved cars.


 
"They'll keep going until they're all gone or they get towed," Clemens said.

Middle of this week could be interesting... it is suppose to warm up a bit so some of this snow is going to start melting -- the only problem there is no gutter on a lot of the streets I have been on for the water to flow down... so the water will stay in the street and then freeze at night... making for interesting driving in the mornings.

Here is a photo I took a week or so ago of the type of equipment used to clear snow from the Kerrey Bridge and some of the major trails in the Metro.



Omaha should have a substantial FLEET of these vehicles which can be mobilized after snow storms to clear all the hiking/biking trails, park trails, high traffic public sidewalks, and "problem" sidewalks in a timely manner.

Not sure that would even help some of these sidewalks around here!  There was a bobcat clearing in my neighborhood and you could not eve see a lot of it because the snow was so deep!

Looks like a Bobcat Toolcat to me.  Great little utility vehicle and tool but no little price tag to match.   Probably 30K before you buy any tools or attachments for it.   Probably 50 -60K with the blower and spreader that is in the photo.   Justification is there for some jobs but with all the issues with snow and everything I think park and hiking trails are way down the list.... as they should be.  Sidewalks, now that is another story. Get on them.  A few - Yes, a Fleet - probably not.

StreetsOfOmaha wrote:Here is a photo I took a week or so ago of the type of equipment used to clear snow from the Kerrey Bridge and some of the major trails in the Metro.



Omaha should have a substantial FLEET of these vehicles which can be mobilized after snow storms to clear all the hiking/biking trails, park trails, high traffic public sidewalks, and "problem" sidewalks in a timely manner.

On Friday we ended up having to get our snow removal company to clear our part of the alley between Regis and Farnam 1600 so that our alley doors, dumpsters, etc. could be accessed. With all the snow our trash service couldn't get to the dumpsters and someone (I'm guessing the city) piled snow against our exit doors and the dumpsters. I tried calling the snow removal hotline a few times but with the residential streets taking up a lot of the city's time/manpower, the alleys were not high on their list to get cleaned up.

The Parks Dept. was busy on 16th St. today moving all the snow to the curb with a front end loader from the piles that were created during the snow storms. It is pretty amazing how much snow is piled up- I'm hoping they come through overnight and clear the large piles out so they have more places to put snow when it starts snowing again.

They started clearing some of the parking lanes here in Dundee. You can now park next to Beer and Loathing again.

Sidewalk still not shoveled?

http://www.omaha.com/article/20100122/N ... 37/0/MONEY

Kevin Cole WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER wrote:If you still haven't scooped your snow-covered sidewalk, you may soon be receiving a stern warning from the local authorities, or maybe even a nice handwritten note from a neighbor.

Officials in Omaha, Bellevue, Council Bluffs, Red Oak and Blair said Thursday that sidewalk snow must go. In each city, residents are supposed to clear sidewalks 24 hours after the last snowflake falls.

In Omaha, you don't have to look far to find sidewalks that are virtually impassable and people walking in the street.

“Now it's two weeks past the last snowstorm,” said Capt. Thomas Lamb of the Washington County Sheriff's Office in Blair. “It's way past the time for sidewalks to be cleared.”

Omaha city workers have shoveled some private sidewalks and billed the property owners for the work.

Brad wrote:Sidewalk still not shoveled?

http://www.omaha.com/article/20100122/N ... 37/0/MONEY

Kevin Cole WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER wrote:If you still haven't scooped your snow-covered sidewalk, you may soon be receiving a stern warning from the local authorities, or maybe even a nice handwritten note from a neighbor.

Officials in Omaha, Bellevue, Council Bluffs, Red Oak and Blair said Thursday that sidewalk snow must go. In each city, residents are supposed to clear sidewalks 24 hours after the last snowflake falls.

In Omaha, you don't have to look far to find sidewalks that are virtually impassable and people walking in the street.

“Now it's two weeks past the last snowstorm,” said Capt. Thomas Lamb of the Washington County Sheriff's Office in Blair. “It's way past the time for sidewalks to be cleared.”

Omaha city workers have shoveled some private sidewalks and billed the property owners for the work.

Slightly off topic, but today the snow plow finally made it back to my neighborhood to finish clearing both sides of the street.  They threw all the snow back in my sidewalk.

Is the underground de-icing system still used at 90th & Dodge?  I have not heard much about it recently.  The last several storms have shown a snowy intersection.

bbinks wrote:Is the underground de-icing system still used at 90th & Dodge?  I have not heard much about it recently.  The last several storms have shown a snowy intersection.

I was wondering the same thing.  I don't think it was ever used after one or 2 failed attempts at using it.

Yeah, my memory also says it didn't work as intended.

Part of the problem with the snow removal was the cities lack of serviceable equipment. There was a news report (I don't recall what station) that stated that 2/3 of the cities equipment was old, broken down and not usable. Now, I am by no means an expert in these matters, nor do I purport myself to be. However, it does seem to me, that a city of this size would budget 2 new pieces of equipment, within a fiscal year, and auction off its' 2 oldest to a neighboring municipality or authority.

OWH wrote: Rules make way for snowplows
The proposed parking restrictions for eastern Omaha would require drivers to move vehicles during a declared snow emergency based on an odd- and even-numbered system. On odd-numbered calendar dates during the snow emergency, parking would be permitted on the side of streets with odd-numbered addresses (south and east sides). On even dates, parking would be permitted on the side with even-numbered address (north and west sides).

http://omaha.com/article/20100913/NEWS0 ... -snowplows

also...

OWH wrote:Omahans in all parts of the city who push the snow and ice from their property onto streets or alleys might be charged by the city to remove the mess.

Sooo, when the snow plows rebury my sidewalk, surely they'll have no problem coming back and cleaning up their mess, too, right??

almighty_tuna wrote:

OWH wrote: Rules make way for snowplows
The proposed parking restrictions for eastern Omaha would require drivers to move vehicles during a declared snow emergency based on an odd- and even-numbered system. On odd-numbered calendar dates during the snow emergency, parking would be permitted on the side of streets with odd-numbered addresses (south and east sides). On even dates, parking would be permitted on the side with even-numbered address (north and west sides).

http://omaha.com/article/20100913/NEWS0 ... -snowplows

also...

OWH wrote:Omahans in all parts of the city who push the snow and ice from their property onto streets or alleys might be charged by the city to remove the mess.

Sooo, when the snow plows rebury my sidewalk, surely they'll have no problem coming back and cleaning up their mess, too, right??

Sounds like we will have 48 hours to clear sidewalks. Just wait the 45 hours it takes the plow to get around to the street, then shovel the sidewalk?  :;):

I have never seen a snow plow get so close to the curb that they can actually push the snow over the 3' grass strip and on to my sidewalk.  Sure a small chunk of snow or two rolls off and on to the sidewalk, but nothing to worry about.  As far as blocking the driveway, its never really bothered me.  Instead of standing in my driveway and pushing the snow back out in to the street, I stand in the street and push it up in to my yard.  Its no big deal and doesn't take any more work than pushing it in to the street.  The snow is actually good for the grass because it acts like a blanket.  Shoveling snow is a part of life in Omaha and soon as you get over it, the happier you will be because until the start plowing with jet engines, there is not where else to put it but along the curb.

It's the same, wherever you go. they're gonna push it back over the curb and driveway. I too recycle the snow and push it onto my privet hedge row that lines my walk. You can see the difference in the spring when the row that gets the bonus snow just grows like crazy compared to the part that runs back to the house.

Brad wrote:I have never seen a snow plow get so close to the curb that they can actually push the snow over the 3' grass strip and on to my sidewalk.

On Mockingbird they haul |expletive| through there and it's damn near surfable when they plow

Brad wrote:I have never seen a snow plow get so close to the curb that they can actually push the snow over the 3' grass strip and on to my sidewalk.  Sure a small chunk of snow or two rolls off and on to the sidewalk, but nothing to worry about.  As far as blocking the driveway, its never really bothered me.  Instead of standing in my driveway and pushing the snow back out in to the street, I stand in the street and push it up in to my yard.  Its no big deal and doesn't take any more work than pushing it in to the street.  The snow is actually good for the grass because it acts like a blanket.  Shoveling snow is a part of life in Omaha and soon as you get over it, the happier you will be because until the start plowing with jet engines, there is not where else to put it but along the curb.

Yeah, I did this this past winter not thinking about.  Then, 2 months later, I was upset when I saw my yard covered in a half inch of sand and salt.  Needless to say, it was FAR from good for my grass.  

Screw the city.  Any snow they throw in my driveway WILL be going right back into the street.