Snow and Ice Removal Tips After a Storm

Property owners/residents are responsible for removing all snow and ice from sidewalks and accessible ramps next to their property following a storm per City Ordinance. Be sure you are in compliance with the City's Snow and Ice Removal Ordinance.

Ice needs to be removed within 6 hours from the time it forms, and snow needs to be removed within 12 hours after snow stops falling during the day and before 1 p.m. if it snowed during the night, per City Ordinance.

Here are some helpful tips to follow:

• Shovel your sidewalk and clear it of ice on all sides of your property, down to bare pavement.
• Make the path wide enough for someone using a wheelchair, walker or stroller (at least 3 feet wide).
• Clear snow to curb so that collection crews can access your trash barrels and recycling toters and they are not behind snowbanks.
• Clear ramps at corners and crosswalks. Reminder: property owners are also responsible for the crosswalks in front of their property.
• Stock up on ice melter before a storm. Use ice melter with calcium chloride (CaCl2), which is the best choice for the environment and only a small amount is required to melt ice. Potassium chloride (KCl) is okay, too. Avoid rock salt (NaCl or sodium chloride), which kills plants and trees.
• Do not use sand. It doesn’t help pedestrians; but it makes hard ice more slippery. It gets into street drains and is expensive to clean up in the spring.
• Keep street drains clear of snow (to avoid ponding/icing at the bottom of ramps)
• Consider helping neighbors who may have difficulty clearing their walk. Keeping sidewalks passable is the neighborly thing to do, and it’s the law.

Please remember that shoveling or plowing snow into the street and/or bike lanes is prohibited.

The fine for failing to comply with the City’s sidewalk clearance ordinances is $50/day for each day of non-compliance. Even if you aren’t around, it is your responsibility to ensure someone clears sidewalks and ramps next to your property.

We all have a shared responsibility for keeping our community safe and accessible during winter weather. For you, your neighbors, people with strollers or using wheelchairs, and the many people in Cambridge who walk, please do your part. The City provides salt barrels in several locations throughout the City for residents to use. Please take only what you need.

Visit the Snow Center at www.cambridgema.gov/snow for more information and to learn how to report icy/snow issues.