Snow and Ice Control Policy
On December 11, 2019, Carlisle City Council unanimously approved a snow and ice control policy developed by city staff. This policy is meant to provide general guidance and information to staff and the community.
The policy provides information on many different aspects of our snow and ice removal operations including when the snow ordinance goes into effect, service goals, street priorities, sidewalk responsibilities, and mailbox information, among others.
To see the full policy, click here.
Snow and Ice Removal Priorities
The main goal of the City of Carlisle is to allow safe and easy access on the main thoroughfares and secondary thoroughfares leading to them. This will allow the public to utilize these thoroughfares to gain access to main traffic arteries such as Highway 5 and Army Post Road. The secondary goal is to provide citizens with a manageable unplowed distance to and from the designated thoroughfares.
The City Council has established the following priorities for snow plowing during winter weather events:
| Priority | Classification | Streets Included |
| 1 | Main Thoroughfares Essential City Service Accesses | Railroad Street – Public Works & Electric Dept. North 1st Street & Accesses to Police Department & City Hall Main Street from North 1st Street to North 2nd Street North 2nd Street from Main Street to School Street School Street South 5th Street Downtown Business District |
| 2 | Secondary Thoroughfares Tertiary Thoroughfares | North 5th Street North 9th Street Scotch Ridge Road Veteran’s Memorial Drive Market Street |
| 3 | Residential Streets Public Parking Lots Downtown Alleys | All other streets and sections not previously listed |
| 4 | Sidewalks Trails Alleys Shared Use Paths | Plowing will typically start after snowfall ends and after street priorities are finished. |
During an average storm, the goal is that snow plowing operations will be completed in 16 hours. Actual performance will vary greatly, depending upon factors such as actual snowfall amount vs. forecast amount, air and pavement temperatures, previous accumulations, etc. It is important to note that many of these factors are outside of the control of the City. The public works director and their designees will have the discretion to make decisions in line with the goals and expectations of the snow policy.
Priorities do not necessarily indicate the final routes that our snow plowing equipment utilizes. In their regular operations, these priorities will indicate the order of focus staff will give to certain streets. There may be priority 2 or 3 sections that are plowed in conjunction with priority 1 sections. Routes are developed with the priorities and efficient use of resources and equipment in mind.
We appreciate your assistance and understanding during our winter weather events and look forward to providing a high level of service in this area of our operations.