An explanation from the town of Fort Frances as to why it hasn’t gone with a ‘snow boot’ or ‘snow gate’ on its graders.
The equipment is designed to avoid plowing snow in front of driveways when clearing streets.
In a report, Operations and Facilities manager Travis Rob says the devices are only effective with small snowfall amounts and when it’s not wet.
He adds a grader’s wing can’t be used when the ‘snow boot’ is attached.
Rob says with the width of Fort Frances roadways, it would require two passes in each direction to clear snow curb-to-curb and a doubling of time it takes to do the job.
That would put an impact on the town’s ability to meet provincial standards.
The township of Ignace is one of few municipalities in northwestern Ontario now using the equipment.
