Snow and Ice Plan

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Morton Public Works .. SNOW and ICE Removal Plan

Subdivision growth has slowed in Morton but our street network still continues to grow at almost 1% per year. The Village of Morton has still seen almost 30% growth in the street network over the past 20 years. Our snow and ice removal plan is constantly evolving to reflect those changes.

The Village of Morton has over 250 lane miles of pavement, plus over 90 dead-ends and cul-de-sacs, 13 parking lots, and numerous alleys. Currently, the Village has 9 trucks and 2 tractor/loader/backhoes available for snow removal. Public works employees will drive over 700 miles to clean-up after an average snowfall.

In 2011, the Village of Morton built a salt storage facility located at 450 Detroit Ave. capable of holding 2000 tons (a year supply) of road salt. This allows the Village to buy and receive delivery of salt in the off season when salt demand is low saving the salt budget many thousands of dollars annually.

Calcium Chloride (CaCl) is also used to treat the salt allowing the salt to be used effectively at a lower temperature.

The goal of the Snow and Ice Removal Plan is to have the entire city “cleaned up” within 14 hours AFTER it has stopped snowing. This is based upon a 4 inch or less of “dry”, non-drifting snowfall.

The goal does take into account shift changes, refueling, and restocking of salt and CaCl. It does not allow for any truck or equipment breakdowns and assumes all trucks are available and manned.

There will be a “snow boss” (who is a street department employee) out with the trucks during any snow plowing operation. Mike Ingold, Street Superintendant, will be in charge of the overall operation.

Priorities of Snow and Ice Removal Plan:

The Village of Morton is divided into four areas of effort. The areas are North, East, and South with the Major (main) routes being the fourth area. There are three crews with three manned trucks in each area. Each crew works a 12 hour shift. The Village of Morton Public Works Department relies upon employees from all departments to man the crews. The two tractor/loader/backhoes are used for plowing parking lots, dead-ends, cul-de-sacs and alleys.

The following roadways belong to and are maintained by IDOT; the Village of Morton Does Not plow or salt them:

Route 98 (W. Birchwood), west of Detroit Ave.
S. Main: from Birky Rd. to I-155
Jackson St.: (all through the Village of Morton)
N. Morton Ave.: from Jackson St. to Ashland Ave.

The following are private roads; the Village of Morton Does Not plow or salt them:

The north leg of the intersection into K-Mart/Kroger
Martha’s Parkway (the drive connecting Clark St. to Kroger)
Hampton Way and Hampton Ct.
W. Jefferson: west of Detroit is a Tazewell County highway.

Snow Emergency Parking Bans:

The “snow emergency” ordinance is included in the Village Code (Section 9, Chapter 13). It allows the President of the Board of Trustees, the Superintendant of Public Works or the Superintendant of Streets the power to issue a ban on on-street parking during snow removal emergencies.

If and when it is implemented, all vehicles must be off the street by 7:00 PM. Enforcement of the parking ban may include ticketing and/or towing of vehicles in violation.

Emergency Snow Routes:

In addition to parking bans, Section 9-13-5 mandates “after a 2” accumulation of snow and/or ice, an automatic prohibition of parking on snow routes shall be in effect”.

The designated snow routes are signed and are as follows:

Main Detroit

Jefferson Idlewood

Nebraska Missouri

Bond Mosiman

First Ave: (between Jefferson and Birchwood)

Fourth Ave.: (between Idlewood and Washington)

Depositing Snow from Private property on Village Streets:

Many private snow removal contractors and individuals clearing private parking lots and driveways push snow into or across Village streets. Depositing snow in a public street is a violation of state law (Section 605ILCS 5/9-130) and Village Ordinance and subjects the violator to fines and considerable liability.

Snow piled in the street can present a hazard to traffic, can cause problems for Village plows, and certainly inconsiderate of the neighbor upon whose property was piled.

Frequently Asked Questions About Snow and Ice Removal:

1. Why does the Village plows leave a windrow of snow in driveways?

The Village’s priority of clearing the street is to plow it to the side (curb) of the street, thus windrows across over 6000 driveways are inevitable.

(To help mitigate windrowing and snow piling in front of your driveway, try to throw snow to the right side of your drive (as you face the street)

2. Why does the Village have to plow curb-to-curb?

We need to make room for the snow from future snow events. Snow fall has occurred in Morton as early as November and as late as April. We need to try to maintain on-street parking which is very important in some neighborhoods. The storm water inlets are at the curb, eventually the snow will melt and we have to have a clear path to the drains or the water will refreeze in the street making a lake of ice which can be extremely hazardous and almost impossible to remove.

3. Why does it take so long to get to cul-de-sacs and dead-ends?

The Village crews plow 250 lane miles of pavement and over 90 dead-ends and cul-de-sacs. For emergency concerns, the crews concentrate on the most heavily traveled streets first. (The Village of Morton has streets that carry 17000 cars/day all the way to cul-de-sacs that may have only 50 cars/day.)

4. Who is going to remove the snow at my mailbox by the street?

It is the property owner’s responsibility to have his mail box accessible to the letter carrier.

5. My mailbox fell over when snow from the passing plow went by. What should I do?

While many municipalities consider mail boxes in the R-O-W the responsibility of the homeowner, the Village of Morton has a repair policy. The Street department will follow the section of the Village Code (Section 8-1-5(F), adopted 2007) regarding mail boxes damaged during snow removal. (Residents must notify the Village within 3 days of the damage. Upon notification, the Village will inspect and verify the mailbox was caused by the Village. If the Village elects to replace or repair the mailbox, it shall be done as soon as practical. If it is to be replaced, it shall be done with a standard box and support as established by the Village. If the owner declines the Village replacement, the Village shall reimburse the owner up to $150.00 as a full and final payment for the damage.)

Village of Morton, Illinois