City Snow Plows

Plowing the roads in Painesville is a full time job. During the winter months, we work around the clock with two shifts every day (day and night shifts). When the snow is heavy, those shifts become 12 hours to keep up with Mother Nature. 

    • In all, the City of Painesville has 6 snow plow trucks in commission, all with salt spreaders.
    • Roads are plowed in order of importance - starting with emergency routes, busy roads, hills and bridges. Once those roads are cleared, the secondary streets are plowed.
    • Painesville purchases our salt supply every year in the Spring and that supplies has to last from November 1 through April 30.
    • We also pretreat our roads with liquid brine when possible.
    • Our drivers are responsible for all city streets within corporation limits as well as city parking lots.
    • If you have any questions or concerns regarding plowing, please contact the Public Works office at 440-392-9676. Remember, during winter storms, crew members will be out plowing and you may have to leave a message.

 

When Will My Street Be Plowed

The order in which Public Works clears snow for the over 200 streets within city corporation limits is based on motorist usage, with safety being the primary concern. We understand it can be frustrating if your side street is not plowed while a main road is. We prioritize our plowing based on the number of people affected. 

    1. Main roads (which are usually emergency routes) and roads with hills/significant grades (E Erie Street, Liberty Street, E Main Street, Richmond Street, N State Street, W Walnut Street)
    2. Feeder streets with hills/significant grades (like High Street, W South Street, Latimore Street, Mill Street, Skinner Avenue)
    3. Other primary arteries traversing the City (like Bank Street, Jackson Street, Main Street, Mentor Avenue, W Erie Street, St. Clair Street and State Street)
    4. Streets adjacent to schools (like Cedarbrook Drive, Chestnut Street, Elm Street, Kensington Avenue, Gillett Street, W Walnut Street)
    5. Connector streets (like Fern Drive, Grant Street, Hayes Street, Newell Street, Marion Avenue)
    6. Residential streets with a heavy concentration of traffic due to population density (like Cedarbrook Drive, Cumings Drive, Heisley Park and Liberty Greens developments)
    7. Other pass-through residential areas (Belmont Drive, Morse Avenue, E South Street, etc.)
    8. Residential neighborhood dead-end streets and cul-de-sacs (like Community Lane, Corwin Drive, Michael Court, Miller Court, Tiber Drive, etc.)

 

Important Snow Reminders

    • There is an automatic parking ban when 2 inches of snow falls within 24 hours.
    • Keep your snow on your own property! Plowing into the street is dangerous for other drivers and doubles our plow drivers' workload when they are trying to keep the streets safe.
    • Give our snow plow drivers plenty of space on the roads. Plowing is a skill that requires a lot of work! Not only are they maneuvering the plow and salt mechanics, they are keeping their eyes on the road, avoiding parked cars (see parking snow ban) and pedestrians, and listening to radio updates from other drivers and the weather service. 
    • Make sure you keep fire hydrants unblocked. It's the property owner's responsibility to keep them uncovered. This allows our Fire Department to quickly and effectively access water in case of an emergency, saving precious time.