City of Calgary road crews prepared for upcoming snowfall

Though Tuesday is the first day of spring, Calgary drivers will see snow this week.

It's expected the snow will begin falling on Tuesday evening, continuing for several days.  

"What we're seeing in the forecast, and we follow a number of forecasts, is somewhere in the region of 20 to 40 centimeters (of snow)," said Chris Hewitt, manager of mobility maintenance with the City of Calgary.

The snow could make for a slippery and wet commutes on Wednesday and Thursday, but Hewitt says Calgary crews are ready.

"We've had a few days knowing this was coming so we've been able to get equipment up and ready, we've been able to call and notify contractors that we may be calling in some of their forces as well."

The city operates 100 snow plows and another 27 graders.

Hewitt says crews have the advantage of starting with clear roads.

"The roads are warm, which is great, it can help us during the first six to 12 hours of a storm until the roads get really cold.

"We expect to be circling the city quite a few times here during the next few days."

Hewitt says the city does not expect to implement snow route parking ban.

"We think that the roads have enough capacity right now to handle the storm that's coming."

Calgary Transit activating snow detours March 20 

Calgary Transit will be activating snow detours on some routes beginning at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, March 20.

Officials say the detours help reduce the number of buses that get stuck and keep transit moving as smoothly as possible.

"We’re keeping an eye on road and weather conditions and will provide an update when the detours are lifted," city officials said in a Tuesday news release.

It’s anticipated they'll be in place until the end of service on Friday.

A list of all bus routes that have snow detours can be viewed at calgarytransit.com/SnowDetours. 

QEII expected to be snowy

RCMP in southern Alberta are warning drivers the snowfall could create "treacherous road conditions" for the next 40 hours.

"Traditionally, the region between Airdrie and Innisfail on the QEII has been an area of great concern," warned RCMP in a Tuesday news release.

"If you do not have to travel, please stay home."