When snow arrives in Kansas City, things can get hectic. Roads are filled with snow and with so many snow plows available, residents are left wondering when their streets will be cleared.
When will your street be plowed? What streets are plowed first? How many trucks does the city have to clear snow from the roads?
Here’s what to know about Kansas City snow removal.
What streets do snow plows prioritize?
Kansas City has two different snow plowing programs, called the arterial program for major streets, and the residential program for side streets. A city representative told The Star that every street in the city falls under one of these two programs.
Both arterial and residential programs receive the following treatment:
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Pretreating the roads with salt, brine, a liquid salt solution and “ice ban” 24 hours or more before storms arrive.
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Expanding snow removal service to 24 hours a day on residential routes.
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Curb-to-curb plowing on all streets.
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Plowing multi-lane arterial streets with multiple trucks to ensure the street is fully cleared on the first pass.
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Suspending trash and recycling during storms to make drivers available for plowing snow and to reduce the number of other vehicles on the road.
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Deploying technology to track the exact locations of plows, digital plow route management and progress tracking of all routes, which you can check online.
Arterial routes, such as Main Street, North Oak Trafficway, Holmes Street, Wornall Road and Barry Road, receive this treatment:
Residential routes, which are your neighborhood streets, receive this treatment:
When can I expect my street to be plowed?
The city said it depends on the plow driver’s route. The drivers operate in 12-hour shifts and typically get through their route in that time frame. Some routes have multiple drivers, meaning they could treat side streets faster or slower depending on who’s available.
The arterial program for major roads will always begin before the snow starts, as they pre-treat the roads. The trucks are also on route when it starts snowing.
Plowing streets on the residential program will begin at the beginning of the storm if the storm rolls in during working hours or if the night shift is already working. Otherwise, the residential drivers start their shifts at 6 a.m.
Green: a vehicle passed in the last 0 to 4 hours
Yellow: a vehicle passed in the last 4 to 8 hours
Orange: a vehicle passed in the last 8 to 16 hours
Purple: a vehicle passed in the last 16 to 24 hours
Blue: a vehicle passed in the last 24 to 48 hours
How many snow trucks and drivers does Kansas City have?
Kansas City spokesperson Sherae Honeycutt said that Kansas City currently has approximately 285 snow removal vehicles to cover 37 main routes and 66 residential routes, 24 hours a day during a snowstorm.
The city will have over 400 drivers between multiple departments and employees within the city who are trained, so when there is a weather event they can focus on plowing and clearing snow.
Which streets are the city’s responsibility, and which ones are the state’s responsibility?
The Missouri Department of Transportation treats the highways such as I-70, while Kansas City takes its streets. Some streets and neighborhoods are private, meaning they have privately owned snow removal services to assist their area.
You can find which neighborhoods and streets are private by using the city’s parcel viewer and selecting “street row” under platting.
What can I do if my street hasn’t been cleared of snow?
You can report your unplowed street to the city. You can either use the myKCMO app to report streets that need plowing, call 311 or go to the KCMO website and select “snow” as the issue. The city asks that you wait 24 hours after the snow has stopped before reporting.
What about clearing snow from sidewalks?
That is the property owner’s responsibility. A city ordinance states that you have to remove the snow on the sidewalk in front of your property in a timely manner.
If your street isn’t plowed, you can also let The Star know at kcq@kcstar.com.
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