Dear Sir:
During this past winter the City of Terrace utilized several methods of clearing the city streets; some efficiently others were a shambles.
This is what I observed:
The most efficient and a lesser strain on my back: A grader would be the first piece of equipment in the early morning. He would make a pass with the belly blade clearing one half of the road surface and the wing blade clearing that snow as well as clearing the sidewalk, depositing it on the boulevard. We only had to clear the driveway once.
The next efficient but harder on the home owners was a tandem truck with a belly blade, which cleared the road and dumped the material on the sidewalk. We then had to clear the driveway. Some time later the smaller snowblower would come along and clear the sidewalk, blowing the snow onto the boulevard. We had to once again clear the driveway.
The most inefficient and far too often the case. a small snowplow would clear the sidewalk to the boulevard. We would clear the driveway.
Later would come a tandem truck with a belly blade and clear the road onto the sidewalk. We would clear the driveway.
Later would come the sidewalk plow and once again we would have to clear the driveway. You can be sure that the next piece of equipment would be the truck with the belly blade again.
By this time it would be quitting time and the snow on the sidewalk was to be there for quite a while.
The graders with the wing plow may not travel as fast as the tandem trucks but they sure do a far better job, more efficiently and are far easier on my back! It is too bad they are not used more.
Ron Gowe,
Terrace, BC