Roads

SPRING ROAD CLEAN-UP PROGRAM

Spring Clean-Up is a city-wide street sweeping program that takes place in Spring every year to remove winter sanding materials and debris that has accumulated on city roads during the winter months.  The City sweeps more than 90 kilometres of paved roads in a planned effort to keep the city clean and safe for pedestrians, motorists and cyclists.  Spring Clean-Up also reduces water pollution by preventing the run-off of sanding materials and debris from entering our water system through the storm drains.

Schedule

Spring clean-up starts once snowing has stopped, usually in mid-March and normally completes in June annually.  This timeline is dependent upon weather conditions and equipment servicing needs.  Our crews do not sweep when it is raining as this makes the area too wet and muddy so the sweeper cannot clean properly.

Sweeping begins on Columbia Avenue, main artery roads and the downtown core first as these roads receive the most amount of traffic.  Then city crews clean residential roads at higher elevations as they normally have higher concentrations of winter sanding material and crews work their way down to the lower elevation roads.  Crews work in shifts from 7 am to 11 pm to finish this work as quickly as possible.

Notification and Process

Street Sweeping In Your Area signage will be placed in your neighborhood 1-2 days before and the day of sweeping as notification.  City crews clean streets in 2-3 separate steps so they will be returning to your street until all steps have been completed, which are:

Step 1 - Clean-up all larger coarse sanding particles and debris

Step 2 - Sweeping finer sanding materials and road washing

Step 3 - Completion of a second wash down if needed

Did you know?

That Columbia Avenue from 18th Street all the way south to the end of the city is actually categorized as a highway and not part of Castlegar's road system?  The Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure contracts Yellowhead Bridge and Road (YRB) Kootenay Boundary to snowplow, sand and sweep this section of Columbia Avenue.  YRB Kootenay Boundary can be contacted at 1-888-630-1420 or at YRB Kootenay Boundary

How you can help speed up the cleaning

City-wide road cleaning is a huge job and getting the work done is a collaborative effort.  The city relies on the cooperation of vehicle owners to watch for Street Sweeping In Your Area signs indicating when your neighborhood road is scheduled for cleaning and to remove your vehicle(s) from the road being swept that day so our crews can do a thorough job.  This is a short-term inconvenience for the greater good of the city.  

A big thank you to all residents who move their vehicles out of the way year after year!

Will the City be cleaning winter sanding materials off sidewalks and boulevards?

City crews normally clean sanding materials off sidewalks and boulevards on main artery roads only. Please do not rake sand/gravel from your grass boulevard onto your street for collection unless city signage indicates that our crews will be cleaning your road at that time.

Raking Sand Off Sidewalks and Boulevards

If your home is adjacent to a boulevard or sidewalk that is not on a main artery road and you want the winter sand removed, please rake the sand from your sidewalks and boulevards onto your road beside the curb ONLY WHEN you see the signage indicating sweeping will be done in your neighborhood.  The material will be collected when city crews are in your neighborhood to complete the street sweeping.

What do I do if street cleaning falls on my garbage or recycling collection day?

If you have front street collection, place your carts on the sidewalk or grass boulevard next to the curb on collection day.  Once street cleaning is complete, you can put your carts out as normal on the street on collection day.  

What you can do if you notice some sanding material and debris is left behind after your road has been cleaned

When the street sweeping signs are in your neighborhood and vehicles are left on the road, city crews will sweep around vehicles.  If debris is left behind because of this and you want to be a good neighbor, you can sweep up the debris yourself.  If you do this, please follow these suggestions:

• Use garbage bags when cleaning up sand, gravel, dust and other debris.  Do not leave debris loose in your garbage cart.  This will help keep the air free of dust and keep collection trucks clean as well.
• Heavy road debris needs to be double-bagged to avoid punctures and rips in the bags.  Try to keep the weight down to under a 20kg (45 pound) weight limit and do not overload your garbage cart.  Weight limits for garbage carts can be found here .
• For your garbage collector's safety, place all bagged debris inside your garbage cart for removal.
• If you do not want to dispose of this debris in your household garbage, please dispose of it at the landfill.  

I live in a new subdivision and my road did not get cleaned.  Why?

New subdivision roadways are the responsibility of the developer until they receive a Final Acceptance Certificate (FAC) from the city.  At that time, the city assumes responsibility for maintaining the subdivision's roads.