Mayor Walsh Issues Snow Safety Alert for Major Winter Storm

Published on February 24, 2022

With heavy snow expected for morning commute, Mayor urges drivers to avoid unnecessary travel

Syracuse N.Y. – With a major snow storm moving toward the Northeastern United States and a Winter Storm Warning going into effect for Central New York, Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh issued a Snow Safety Alert for the City of Syracuse effective Thursday evening into Friday afternoon.

“Like much of the Northeast, Syracuse is going to get hit with heavy amounts of snow in the early morning hours of Friday that will continue through the morning commute,” said Mayor Walsh. “Following heavy snowfall in the morning, a potential change in conditions by midday could bring sleet and ice on top of the existing snow, so we urge residents to commute with caution and only if necessary until the storm passes. This Snow Safety Alert is asking all our residents to help us get through this major snow event safely.”

The local alert advises drivers to be prepared for hazardous road conditions; reminds residents to obey odd-even parking regulations; and urges property owners to clear their sidewalks and around fire hydrants. Information on snow safety in the City of Syracuse is available at http://syrgov.net/snowsafety/. Residents are encouraged to use the City’s live Snow Plow Map on the Snow Safety page to gauge real-time road conditions throughout the event to make informed decisions before venturing into snowy conditions.

The Snow Safety Alert provides two important reminders to city residents to help keep roads and sidewalks passable:

 1. Property owners are required to clear snow from sidewalks on their properties and around fire hydrants. Keeping sidewalks as clear as possible during the storm and cleaned up immediately after the snow ends helps keep pedestrians off roads. The Syracuse Fire Department asks residents to clear a three-foot area around and a path to fire hydrants near their property. The Supplemental Sidewalk Snow Removal Program will clear about 100 miles of city sidewalks. Residents can view and download the map of sidewalks that will be cleared by the City in the Sidewalk Snow Removal section of the Snow Safety page. Even in these areas, residents are responsible for keeping their sidewalks clear.

 2. Observe alternate side parking rules and park cars off street whenever possible.DPW plows need to be able to access streets in order to clear them. Syracuse Police will be ticketing and towing vehicles that are illegally parked.

The City has identified priority streets for focused parking enforcement during snow events. These streets were selected using city data, including the percentage of multi-family dwellings, the width of the street, and other elements contributing to increased on-street parking. The list also includes streets known to be problem points for plow drivers:  

Residents are advised that seasonal odd-even parking restrictions will be enforced on certain downtown blocks. Signage marking the parking changes and listing the hours for alternate parking is in place in the following areas:

100 & 200 blocks Erie Blvd. E.
100 & 200 blocks E. Water St.
100 & 200 blocks S. Warren St.
300 & 400 blocks S. Warren St.
300 block of Montgomery St.
100 & 200 blocks Madison St.
100 & 200 blocks E. Jefferson St.
100 block W. Jefferson St.

Registered vehicle owners found in violation of the restrictions will be subject to ticketing and towing. For more information on downtown parking options, including options for overnight parking, please see the Downtown Parking brochure or contact the Downtown Committee at 315-422-8284 or mail@downtownsyracuse.com.

City residents can call Cityline at 315-448-2489 to report other snow related concerns or to make service requests. For all emergencies, the public should call 911.

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