Snow and Ice Control
The Gurnee Public Works Department is responsible for the Village’s snow and ice control operations on 243 centerline miles of public streets and 350 cul-de-sac and dead end streets within the corporate limits of the Village. The Public Works Department operates under the guidance of the 2023-2024 Snow and Ice Control Plan, which establishes control methods and procedures for winter weather events designed to reduce threats to public safety and the traveling public. The procedures established provide details pertaining to the personnel, equipment and materials to be used on the Village’s 11 designated plow routes during SIC operations. View a map of the Village's snow routes.
Salting operations typically begin as streets become slippery, while snowplowing operations commence when more than one (1) inch of snow has accumulated on Village streets. SIC operations are conducted simultaneously on all of Village’s 11 plow routes to ensure uniform coverage of critical areas such as main arterial roads, intersections, curves, hills, and school zones. During an average 4” snowfall a single pass is designed to take between 4-6 hours but the intensity and duration of a storm can drastically affect response times.
Salt use is minimized for environmental benefits and to reduce the impact on the local watershed. Public Works utilizes liquid ice melting chemicals to pre-treat granular salt before spreading it on the roadway. Pre-wetting the salt helps reduce scattering off the target roadway, increases the effectiveness of salt at lower temperatures, and provides the necessary moisture speed up the ice melting process.
What Can I Do To Help
The following tips, when followed, help ensure snow and ice control operations proceed smoothly:
When clearing sidewalks and driveways, do not shovel, blow or plow snow onto the roadway. Village ordinance prohibits placing snow onto the roadway once it has been cleared. Placing snow in the street requires additional staff time to clear the roadway system and you could be liable for damages or injuries resulting from this practice.
When it starts to snow, park your vehicle off of the street. This allows crews to clear the entire roadway and prevents the car from being plowed in, ticketed, or towed.
Please try to clear the snow around fire hydrants. This simple step could save precious time during an emergency.
Please remove portable basketball hoops, benches and decor from the street right-of-way. The Village is not responsible for damage to these items resulting from our snow removal operations.
Check that your mailbox and post are in good repair and that they are behind the curb, not leaning out over the street. For specifications on mailbox placement, please reference the Mailbox Replacement Policy.