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From Reactive to Proactive: Transforming Winter Road Safety in Canada

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By: Essam Dabbour, Ph.D., RSP1, F.ITE, P.Eng.

Author Bio: Dr. Essam Dabbour is a Professional Engineer (P.Eng.) licensed in Ontario, Alberta, and British Columbia. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE), a certified Road Safety Professional – Level 1 (RSP1), and an accredited Road Safety Auditor. He holds a Ph.D. in Transportation Engineering and has more than 35 years of combined academic and practical experience in the field of road safety. Dr. Dabbour is widely recognized as a leading expert in road safety, road design, and traffic engineering. He has authored more than 65 articles in leading peer-reviewed journals and professional publications addressing roadway design, traffic operations, and road safety analysis. He is currently the President of EDA Forensics, a firm specializing in the engineering investigation of traffic collisions and other personal-injury incidents, providing expert analysis to support the legal and insurance systems in determining liability. In addition, Dr. Dabbour serves as the instructor of three professional courses delivered to municipal staff across Ontario, focusing on municipal liability management and strategies to enhance safety for all road users.

Abstract

Each winter, thousands of Canadians are injured because of the accumulation of snow and/or ice on roads and sidewalks. Some of those injuries are fatal, and others cause high medical, social, and financial costs. This article reviews winter maintenance policies across Canada, explains how service levels vary by roadway classification, and highlights the importance of proactive treatment and weather-based decision-making to reduce risk for all road users, including pedestrians, cyclists, and vehicle occupants.

Introduction

Around 7:30 AM on a cold day in January 2010, a woman was walking to her workplace in Kitchener, Ontario, when she slipped on a municipal sidewalk covered with snow and ice. The woman later admitted she was not wearing winter boots, despite realizing the sidewalks were icy that day. Nevertheless, she sued the City of Kitchener for failing to properly maintain the sidewalk, claiming that the City's failure caused her slip-and-fall incident. The judge ruled (1) that although the woman was partially liable for her injuries, the City of Kitchener was 50% liable for all the costs related to the woman’s injuries, including all legal fees.   

The above case is only one example of the over 21,000 Ontario residents who slip on ice and snow each year and sustain injuries that require emergency room visits, which is in addition to more than 1,300 people in Ontario who are killed or injured every year when their vehicles slide/skid on roads due to ice and snow.   

The above numbers demonstrate the ethical and financial burden on road authorities to maintain their roads during the winter season by removing snow, preventing ice formation, and treating ice that has already formed. Failing to do so would create unsafe driving and walking conditions, which could result in road users being injured and seeking compensation. 

Effective winter maintenance is a fundamental part of a Safe System approach, ensuring that roads and sidewalks remain forgiving and protective even when human errors occur. Road authorities in Canada typically develop winter-maintenance policies for their roads based on the road's class, as determined by the speed limit and traffic volume. The availability of resources is another factor often considered when developing winter-maintenance policies. Below is a summary of how different road authorities in Canada translate goals into practice to keep people moving while simultaneously reducing the risk of winter-related injuries.

Winter Maintenance Policies 

Winter maintenance policies typically define the depth of snow that triggers removal, as well as response times for removing snow, preventing ice formation, and/or treating ice that has already formed. Policies vary among road authorities, depending on resource availability and the importance and location of the road. 

In Ontario (2), snow removal should commence within 4 hours of the snow depth reaching 2.5 cm on the most important roads (with very high traffic volumes and/or high speed limits). Alternatively, snow removal should commence within 24 hours of the snow depth reaching 10 cm on the least important roads (with very low traffic volumes and/or low speed limits). 

In colder areas, response times may increase significantly. For example, in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, roads are typically cleared within 24 hours following a snowfall of up to 25 cm. Additional time may be needed to address snowfalls exceeding 25 cm. Winter maintenance on some provincial roads in Newfoundland and Labrador is performed only 5 days a week (Sunday through Thursday), so it may take more than 48 hours to clear accumulated snow (3).           

Level of Service 

Winter maintenance policies also typically define the expected service level of the road surface after winter maintenance activities have been completed. The level of service depends on available resources and the importance and location of the road. Examples of service levels include:  

  • Bare Pavement, which generally means the pavement surface is completely, or nearly completely (e.g., 90%), free of snow, slush, and ice. This level of service is usually reserved for high-priority roads, such as major highways, arterial roads, and expressways with high traffic volumes and essential services access. This level of service requires significant equipment, materials, and cost, with a higher environmental impact due to the extensive use of anti-icing or de-icing material. 
  • Centre Bare (or safe-and-passable), which is a less stringent standard that requires only the center width of the pavement (e.g., 2.5 meters) or the wheel tracks to be bare, with snow pack conditions possibly present on the remaining width of the road. This level of service is usually standard for collector roads or local streets, especially in rural and cold areas.
  • Packed Snow, which generally means that the road surface has a layer of hard-packed snow covering it. The objective of this level of service is to provide a smooth, snow-covered surface that is safe and passable, though not completely clear. This is a common and acceptable level-of-service standard for lower-priority or low-volume roads, such as local residential streets, rural roads, and gravel roads. This level of service is more cost-effective and has a lower environmental impact because it reduces the use of anti-icing or de-icing materials.

The Importance of Weather Monitoring 

Accurate, timely weather data enables road authorities to shift from reactive maintenance to more proactive, planned responses by applying anti-icing materials before the onset of a winter event to prevent snow and ice from adhering to the road surface. This would ultimately improve safety while reducing material use. Road authorities typically monitor the weather through a combination of:

  1. Receiving periodical weather forecasts, either from Environment Canada (4) or any other subscription-based providers. 
  2. Utilizing pavement-embedded sensors and/or vehicle-equipped infrared thermometers that periodically, or consistently, measure pavement temperatures.
  3. Utilizing road-weather information systems (RWIS).
  4. Patrolling a representative sample of roads to verify automated data, detect trouble spots, and identify conditions requiring priority treatment.

Sidewalks 

Proper winter maintenance for sidewalks reduces or eliminates slip-and-fall incidents similar to the one discussed in the Introduction section. However, due to limited resources, most winter maintenance policies allow road authorities to remove snow from sidewalks within 48 hours (or more) only if the snow depth exceeds 8 cm. On some residential and less important roads, road authorities sometimes delegate the task of removing snow from municipal sidewalks to residents and property owners.     

Cycling Facilities

More Canadians are now choosing cycling as a mode of transportation. This is due to several benefits of cycling over motorized vehicles, including health, cost, and effectiveness. However, due to limited resources, winter maintenance for on-road cycling facilities is usually performed after servicing the adjacent traffic lanes, and it may take 24 hours or more to complete it. Off-road cycling facilities, such as multi-use trails, may take longer or never be serviced.        

Private Roads, Parking Lots, and Walkways

Winter maintenance for private roads, parking lots, and walkways is the responsibility of property owners/managers who usually retain experienced winter maintenance contractors to complete these activities. The best-practice guidelines for winter maintenance for private properties are provided by the Transportation Association of Canada (5) and the Canadian Parking Association (6). Similar to road authorities, property owners/managers and/or winter maintenance contractors are also required to regularly monitor weather forecasts to determine the most effective strategy for treating a site. The guidelines also require proactive anti-icing to achieve safer conditions more quickly and with reduced salt usage. 

Conclusion

As Canadian municipalities evolve toward multimodal, equitable transportation networks, winter maintenance policies must be aligned with the needs of all road users. By combining proactive treatment, improved weather-based decision support, and modern service-level policies that acknowledge cyclists and pedestrians as year-round users, municipalities can make measurable progress toward Vision Zero outcomes, reduce long-term costs, and strengthen public trust. Road authorities typically develop winter-maintenance policies based on the road's class, which, in turn, is determined by the speed limit and traffic volume. The availability of resources is another factor often considered when developing winter-maintenance policies. Clearly defined service levels, weather monitoring, patrolling, and a proactive anti-icing approach are critical to reduce hazards for all road users, including motorized vehicles, cyclists, and pedestrians. Winter maintenance for private roads, parking lots, and walkways is the responsibility of property owners/managers, who usually retain experienced winter maintenance contractors to complete these activities in accordance with best-practice guidelines from the Transportation Association of Canada and the Canadian Parking Association.

References

  1. Costerus v. Kitchener (City), 2017 ONSC 6030.
  2. O. Reg. 239/02: Minimum Maintenance Standards for Municipal Highways.
  3. Winter Maintenance Operations Policy – Newfoundland and Labrador. Available from: https://www.gov.nl.ca/ti/roads/highwaydriving/winter-maintenance-operations/. 
  4. Environment Canada. Available from: https://weather.gc.ca/mainmenu/weather_menu_e.html. 
  5. Transportation Association of Canada. (2013). Syntheses of Best Practices Road Salt Management – Chapter 10: Salt Use on Private Roads, Parking Lots and Walkways. 
  6. Canadian Parking Association. (2005). Technical Bulletin 6: Best Management Practices for Salt Use.