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 Castlegar 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.

Spring Road Clean-Up Schedule

Spring clean-up starts once snowing has stopped, usually in March, and normally completes in June. 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 and the sweeper cannot clean properly.

Sweeping begins on Columbia Avenue, main arterial roads, and the downtown core as these roads receive the most amount of traffic. City crews then move to residential roads at higher elevations, as these areas normally have higher concentrations of winter sanding material; from here, the crews work their way down to the lower elevation roads.

Notification & Process

Prior to sweeping, “Street Sweeping in Your Area” signs will be placed in the neighbourhood crews will be working in, so residents can remove any items on the road that could prevent proper sweeping. This includes items such as:

• vehicles
• basketball nets
• garbage carts
• etc.

City crews clean streets in 2-3 separate steps, so they will be returning to your street until all steps have been completed:

• 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

How You Can Help Speed Up 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 neighbourhood 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.

Raking Sand Off Sidewalks & Boulevards

If your home is adjacent to a boulevard or sidewalk that is not on a main arterial 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 neighbourhood. The material will be collected when City crews are in your neighbourhood to complete the street sweeping.

What You Can Do if Sanding Material & Debris is Left Behind After Road Cleaning

When “Street Sweeping in Your Area” signs are in your neighbourhood 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 neighbour, you can sweep up the debris yourself. If you do, 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 20kg (45Ibs) and do not overload your garbage cart.
• 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.