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Winter Operations Advisory with a DSNY Logo

DSNY Issues First Winter Operations Advisory of 2024-25 Season for Wednesday, December 4 at 8:00 p.m.

December 4, 2024

Possibility of minor, localized anti-icing operations until 10:00 a.m., December 5

The New York City Department of Sanitation has issued a Winter Operations Advisory for Wednesday, December 4, 2024, beginning at 8:00 p.m. Operations are possible until 10:00 a.m. on Thursday, December 5. A Winter Operations Advisory is the Department's "lower level" snow-fighting notification, as opposed to the "higher level" Snow Alert.

Based on current forecasts, small amounts of wet snow may fall tonight in parts of the City. No accumulation is expected. While this might normally not merit action by the Department of Sanitation, unseasonably cold temperatures mean that icing conditions are in the realm of possibility. As such, DSNY may assign a very small number of Salt Spreaders to focus on high spots including pretzel interchanges, overpasses, and hairpin turns as needed ahead of the Thursday morning commute.

While this is a particularly minor operation, the Strongest are ready for whatever comes this winter. The Department has well over 600 million pounds of salt on hand, a historically high wintertime headcount, and new high-tech ways of tracking snow operations.

In a snow event, New York City's Sanitation Workers cover our streets, highways, and bike lanes, but all residents should remember that clearing snow from sidewalks is the property owners' responsibility. Property owners must to do their part to make sure that the sidewalks are passable.

All winter weather information and information about the City's response to the storm can be found by visiting the City's Severe Weather website at nyc.gov/severeweather or by calling 311.

Operations Update

Thanks to historic investments in DSNY, the Department's Workers and equipment are more prepared for winter weather than ever before.

Every street is on a route, and unlike in past years, every route can be dispatched at the same time, bringing equity in snow clearance to the entire City. Thanks to historic investments in DSNY, bike lanes will also be serviced simultaneously alongside car lanes. DSNY will be tracking these operations via the new Bladerunner 2.0 platform.

In the extremely unlikely event that a plowable depths of 2" or more are reached, residents will be able to track the progress of DSNY snow removal vehicles at nyc.gov/PlowNYC. Remember, a plowed or salted street will not show blacktop right away.

Trash/Recycling Collection

There is no change to DSNY collection or to bin requirements at this time.

Snow Clearing Information

While DSNY clears streets and bike lanes, property owners are responsible for clearing sidewalks. As a reminder, property owners, including restaurants with outdoor dining structures, may NOT push snow into the street, including bike lanes. This impedes snow clearing operations and is illegal. Snow may be moved against the building, to the curb line, or areas on private property. Sidewalks should be passable for all pedestrians, including a minimum 4-foot clear path, where possible.

If the snow stops falling between:

  • 7 a.m. and 5 p.m., property owners must clear sidewalks within 4 hours
  • 5 p.m. and 9 p.m., property owners must clear sidewalks within 14 hours
  • 9 p.m. and 7 a.m., property owners must clear sidewalks by 11 a.m.

The fine for failure to clear sidewalks is $100 for the first offense, $150 for the second offense and $250 for the third offense.

Alternate Side Parking

There is no change to Alternate Side Parking or to parking meter regulations due to this very minor snow event.
 
New Yorkers are also encouraged to sign up for NotifyNYC, the City's free emergency notification system, available in 14 languages including ASL. Through NotifyNYC, New Yorkers can sign up to receive phone calls, text messages, and emails alerts about severe weather events and emergencies. To sign up for Notify NYC, call 311, visit nyc.gov/notify or follow @NotifyNYC on Twitter.
 
Find information on Sanitation snow operations along with residents' responsibilities during and after snow at nyc.gov/snow.