An important part of our spring maintenance is spring cleanup and street sweeping operations. This work ensures areas such as sidewalks, roads and the cycling network are clear of debris.
Citywide street sweeping is underway, with operations beginning in select suburban areas this weekend.
How long will it take?
Street sweeping operations are an essential part of cleaning up the transportation network, and our Maintenance Quality Standards (MQS) require us to complete them by May 31st. Street sweeping typically begins as early as the weather will allow and occurs during both daytime and nighttime shifts. But when the overnight temperature drops below zero, operations must be paused as the water we use on the road can form into ice, creating dangerous conditions.
The Roads and Parking Services team is monitoring the forecast, and although long-range temperatures are favourable, street sweeping operations may be paused if crews need to respond to a weather event.
How is citywide street sweeping completed?
Citywide street sweeping is done in phases:
- Sidewalks, bus stop pads and medians are cleaned first by a variety of methods using sidewalk sweepers, leaf blowers, flusher trucks and hand brooms.
- A sidewalk sweeper will work in the area first, pushing grit, debris and dust onto the roadway. A vacuum sweeper or mechanical sweeper truck then picks up the majority of grit, debris, small particles and dust removing it from the road.
- This operation might be repeated several times to ensure a clean surface. If vehicles are parked on the street, the unswept area is noted, and crews will return to sweep that portion at a later date.
There are no parking restrictions in effect during citywide street sweeping operations.
Street sweeping in concentrated areas
In urban neighbourhoods that support continuous on-street parking year-round, we complete what is known as concentrated street sweeping. Concentrated street sweeping operations are an important and necessary requirement in the urban neighbourhoods to efficiently move through the streets. Unlike citywide street sweeping operations, parking restrictions are in effect in neighbourhoods where concentrated street sweeping is underway. Residents are required to move their cars to allow street sweeping operations to be completed, and signage will be posted to alert residents when these operations are scheduled to take place.
Concentrated street sweeping operations will begin on April 6 and weather permitting, are expected to be completed on April 15.
Resident support is required
- Residents are reminded to not rake or blow leaves, lawn clippings or other debris onto the roadways as it can make our operations more challenging, especially if the area has already been swept.
- There are no parking restrictions during citywide street sweeping operations. However, we encourage anyone who can to please remove vehicles from the roadway to allow the street sweeping teams to complete their clean-up efficiently.
We recognize that street sweeping operations can be noisy and disruptive, for the short period in which they take place. However, they are an essential part of our spring clean-up efforts and as such; the City of Ottawa’s street sweeping operations are exempt from the Noise By-law (No. 2017-255) under Section 20(1) and may run at any time.
