Tuesday, March 24, 2015 (Halifax, NS) – Halifax Transit is extending free bus and ferry service for a final day on Wednesday, March 25. As well, there will be limited on-street parking starting at 6 a.m. tomorrow, recognizing that many streets have been widened considerably.
The municipality has been working with Halifax Regional Police and Halifax RCMP to enforce Section 139 of the provincial Motor Vehicle Act, which governs all on-street parking during snow removal. Officers are using their discretion to ticket and tow parked vehicles that create a safety hazard, impede snow operations or make the road impassable for other traffic, particularly emergency vehicles.
Businesses in areas where the streets are still narrow or snow removal is underway are encouraged to consider adjusting delivery times for loading and unloading to avoid peak traffic periods, wherever possible.
The municipality would like to thank residents for abiding by these restrictions over the past week. With less traffic on the roads and significantly fewer parked cars obstructing snow-clearing equipment, crews have made significant progress removing snow on streets around the region.
That work is continuing, as there are areas, particularly in residential neighbourhoods, where the streets are still narrow and on-street parking will block access and compromise safety.
Residents should ask themselves the following three things when considering parking on the street:
- Is it safe?
- Can other traffic, including emergency and larger vehicles get by?
- Is there snow clearing underway in the area?
These are the three priorities that officers are focusing on when enforcing the Motor Vehicle Act.
Crews are making progress every day with widening the streets, but parking will continue to be a challenge for some. Halifax Transit is offering a final day of free bus and ferry service to help encourage those people who don’t normally take transit to leave their vehicle at home and take the bus, if they’re able.
Halifax Transit passengers with a March 2015 monthly pass will have their pass extended for use by an additional six days, up to and including April 6, in recognition of the free service offer.
Crews have been working day and night since the storm to open up 3,800 lane kilometres of roads, including residential side streets and cul-de-sacs. Stretched end to end, that’s the same distance as driving from Halifax to Winnipeg. Over the past six days crews have hauled away approximately 18,000 dump truckloads of snow — that’s enough snow to fill the Scotiabank Centre 1.5 times.
Work also continues to clear the almost 1,000 kilometres of sidewalks and 3,600 bus stops across the region. On main route and residential sidewalks, crews are focusing on opening up one whole side of the street and punching out bus stops and crosswalks on the other side. Crews have made good progress with opening up the sidewalks around schools and the feeder sidewalks connecting to them, to ensure a safer commute for students. Work will continue over the coming days to complete all sidewalks.
For more information on snow clearing operations and impacts to municipal services, please visit www.halifax.ca/snow.
Source: Release
