Dec 17, 2008 12:00 pm US/Central
Messy Streets Put City Snow Plan Under Fire
Three-Hour Commutes Lead To Questions About Chicago's Budget-Saving Snow Plan
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
Frustrated commuters, some clocking three- and four-hour drives from the Loop to the suburbs, made their way home Tuesday night in a snowstorm that left some critics wondering where the more-than 600 plows and salt trucks hitting the roads were.
The city's new cost cutting snow removal plan is coming up for debate Wednesday in the City Council. The Streets and Sanitation Department says all 274 snow fighting trucks are now working on the city's side streets.
Between four and five inches of snow fell on the city and the suburbs Tuesday. That's a new record for December 16th.
It took John Ericson three hours to get from his job in Schaumburg to his home in Western Springs -- a 20-mile trip that normally takes about 45 minutes.
"Nothing was salted, nothing was plowed," Ericson said. "I couldn't even see which lane I was in."
Drivers called AM radio stations Tuesday and questioned whether snowy roads and the horrendous traffic in the city, including Lake Shore Drive, might be the result of budget cuts. Matt Smith, a spokesman for city Streets and Sanitation, said 184 trucks hit the city's streets and Lake Shore Drive between 2-2:30 p.m., and the full complement of snow and salt plows -- 274 in all -- were on the road by 4 p.m.
Smith pointed out that Loop traffic jams may be the result of folks getting on to the expressways, where salting and plowing is handled by the state.
''We've got 100 percent of the troops out there,'' he said, adding the first priority is safety and that once arterial streets are cleared, crews will move to side streets.
Smith said he was unaware of any complaints about the snow removal.
Marisa Kollias, Illinois Department of Transportation spokeswoman, said the state's 350-plus trucks were out in force on the expressways, but the rush-hour storm, and cold that makes the snow stick to the pavement, complicated cleanup.
"When the snowstorm hits during the rush hour, there is actually -- there's nothing anybody can do to prevent this kind of traffic nightmare from happening. We can only go as fast as the traffic. Our trucks aren't going over 10 mph," Kollias said later Tuesday evening. "It's not something we can control," she said, noting crews were pre-salting at 1 p.m.
Ald. Tom Allen (38th), who has been critical of the city's cutbacks in snow removal, said he was satisfied with the response Tuesday. Aldermen have been assured routine plowing and salting will improve. ''They're going to get back to being more realistic, but . . . we're going to control costs,'' said Allen.
Despite his satisfaction, Allen will push today for adding $3 million back into the snow removal budget.
Some aldermen are not happy.
"I don't think the resources are out there. I think if you come into the Loop, you see the resources, but you don't see them out in the neighborhoods," said Ald. Billy Ocasio (26th). "Yesterday I had to call personally and just go off on everyone because there are mothers and grandparents trying to get their kids to and from school, and they can't make it. They can't make it down the street."
Former mayor Jane Byrne proved a long time ago that politics are deeply intertwined with snow removal in Chicago.
It took Denise O'Malley, who sits on the Illinois Appellate Court, from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. to travel from the Loop to her home in west suburban Indian Head Park, but she didn't complain.
"There was no room for a snowplow" on the Eisenhower, she said. "That's what happens. I can remember when we had a big snowstorm, it was right before Christmas last year, and it took me two hours to get home."
Snowfall reached 3.2 inches at Midway Airport, while 4.7 inches was reported at O'Hare, according to the National Weather Service. Meteorologist Stephen Rodriguez said there may be lingering snowflakes but that the system would be out of the area by this morning. The city's Aviation Department reported delays of more than two hours at the two airports. O'Hare logged more than 300 canceled flights. Midway counted 50.
The city's full fleets of snow-fighting equipment continue to work on the side streets Wednesday while the airports are reporting only minor delays and cancellations a day after a storm dumped several inches of snow on the area.
CBS 2's Mike Parker and the STNG Wire contributed to this report.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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