Street Sweeping & Flushing
The following will provide some basic information on how the roads are cleaned by the City of Vernon during the Spring, Summer and Fall seasons. City street sweeping and flushing is provided by Municipal employees, and equipment supplemented with rented private sector equipment and operators in all areas of the City.
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ABOUT STREET SWEEPING
What
are the Spring Street Sweeping priorities?
Spring Street sweeping commences late February weather permitting.
The Downtown core, main streets or "arterials", including 32 Street
and Hwy # 6 are completed first. Street sweeping priorities are
based on the volumes of vehicle traffic on roadways where winter
road sand may generate excessive dust.
Once all the snow and ice has melted from the road shoulders and curbs, the Spring Sweeping Program is started aggressively. The City street sweeper as well as number of private sector sweepers are dispatched to sweep all areas of the City of Vernon as quickly as possible. During spring sweeping, the City has equipment operating between the hours of 4:00am and 8:00pm.
What equipment is used to sweep the city streets?
The City of Vernon's fleet includes one Tennant Sentinel
Sweeper, a Mobile Mechanical Street Sweeper, a front broom mounted
Bobcat as well as one sidecast broom mounted on a Loader. The street
sweeper is mechanical pickup broom-type machine that uses two gutter
brooms to direct the sweeping material into the path of the rear
broom which sweeps the debris into the hopper. The machine sprays
a fine mist of water ahead of the broom to suppress dust as it sweeps.
In an effort to increase efficiency, street sweepers may unload debris directly into dump trucks as shown in the picture to the right. Traffic will be delayed for short periods (approximately 3 minutes) during this process. The City appreciates driver patience while this process takes place.
Does
the City wash the streets with water?
The City of Vernon fleet includes a 3000 Gallon Tanker/ Street flusher
used to wash all the fine dust material that remains on the road
surface after the Mechanical street sweepers have finished removing
winter road sand. The Street Flusher utilizes high pressure water
spray nozzles to sweep the road surface to produce a clean roadway.
The debris flows into catch basins which are cleaned annually following
the spring sweeping.
What
can I do to prepare for the Spring Sweeping?
The City does not have the resources to sweep sidewalks adjacent to roadways. Property owners are encouraged to sweep all debris and sand from sidewalk bordering their property onto the road prior to roads being swept by the street sweeper.
How
can I help the City do a good job?
One of the main obstacles for equipment operators is parked vehicles and recreational vehicles. Once the street sweeping program starts, removing your vehicles from your street, cul-de-sac, or alley until the roads are swept and washed will allow the operators to do a much better job and avoid having annoying missed spots in your neighborhood. Street sweeping and flushing occurs day and night so please watch for the signs and keep the roadways clear!
How
often does the City sweep the streets during the rest of the year?
After the spring sweeping has been completed, the street sweeper
operates daily from 4:00am to 12:00pm. with street flushing as required.
The arterial roads are swept 6 to 9 times a year. All other local
streets are swept 3 times per year. The downtown core is swept weekly,
every Friday morning.
During the months of October and November, the street sweeper sweeps those areas in the City that require leaves removed off the roadways.
How
often are the roads in the OK Landing and Blue Jay Subdivision swept?
All roads are swept annually to remove
winter road sand and spot sweeping throughout the year to remove
gravel and dirt from the road surface as needed. Road sweeping to
remove winter road sand will start in late February weather permitting.
Any questions with regard to road maintenance in the OK Landing
and Blue Jay Subdivision may be referred to the Operations Department
at 549-6757.
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