Despite the ice that covered the sidewalks of the metropolis on Thursday, the City of Montreal did not use its “ice crunchers” to clear them, relying on the good old method of spreading sand and salt to allow pedestrians to circulate safely.
A new episode of freezing rain is expected on Friday, and conditions are likely to be even more difficult, warns City spokesperson Philippe Sabourin. But the 15 icebreakers will undoubtedly still remain in the garage, from which they have not left for at least two years.
“Ice crunchers are not the magic solution to icy sidewalks,” explains Mr. Sabourin. You need a good thickness of ice to use them, otherwise they damage the sidewalks. »
The icy surface must also be quite smooth, and the sidewalks wide enough, since these rotating devices must circulate at good speed to be effective, adds the spokesperson.
“Anyway, we only have 15 icebreakers, compared to a total of 2,200 aircraft for winter operations. Even if the conditions were optimal for their use, we could not use them to de-ice all the sidewalks in the city,” he argues.
The ice crunchers were acquired in 2018 for approximately $350,000, according to what the newspaper reported on Thursday. Montreal Journal. As soon as they were purchased, the municipal administration warned that these devices could only be used in very specific circumstances.
This purchase must be seen as research and development, according to Mr. Sabourin. “We are always looking for new technologies to help us in our operations, sometimes it takes trial and error,” he says.
“Worst Friday”
The maintenance teams were hard at work all night from Wednesday to Thursday in anticipation of the predicted icy episode, and they will still be active during the night from Thursday to Friday, indicates Philippe Sabourin.
Thursday morning, rising temperatures helped melt ice on sidewalks. However, the mercury is expected to drop Friday morning, which could pose a challenge in clearing the sidewalks of their layer of ice.
“We expect it to be worse [vendredi], we are very concerned, said Mr. Sabourin. The ice may stick to the concrete, and there may then be snow covering the ice, which poses a danger. We are therefore asking people to postpone their travels and to be very, very careful. »
He points out that, if the spreading of salt and sand is done every 30 minutes on the sidewalks of major arteries and sloping streets, between 8 and 12 hours can still pass between two passages on certain residential streets. “We are dependent on the weather, which we cannot control, and the time necessary to cover the entire network. »