It is not the policy of the Allegany County Department of
Public Works to provide continually bare roads or to provide snow and ice
control services 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. It is also not possible to
maintain a bare road surface during or immediately following a snow or ice
event. Typical hours of operation for snow and ice control are from the hours
of 4:30 AM to approximately 9:00 PM. Snow and ice control operations will be
primarily focused on morning and evening commuter travel times. During times of
severe blizzard, drifting and/or icing conditions, the Public Works Superintendent
or Deputy Superintendent may opt to keep 1 or 2 trucks on duty after normal
hours if it is anticipated that without this extended operation it will be
extremely difficult to open or clear certain roads for commuters.
Thursday, October 24, 2019
Alma town board rejects Allegany County snow and ice contract
For the second time in two weeks, the Alma town board Wednesday
night rejected the Allegany County snow removal and ice control contract for
county roads. Legislator Deb Root attended the meeting and asked the town board
to vote again on the measure. Supervisor Ron Staedt said the board was told “county
legislators would not hold the town to the letter of the contract.” A motion
was brought to the floor by council member Bev Root for a re-vote which was
seconded by Supervisor Staedt. After a twenty-minute discussion, the town board
voted not to accept the contract. Staedt said the town had issues with “language
in the contract.” The contract did provide a $75 per mile increase. Staedt said
the contract also required the town to treat county roads before local
highways. He indicated that was not reasonable. The town of Alma has 39 miles
of local highways and 17.74 miles of county roads. Under the proposed deal, the
town would be provided with an initial supply of 1,100 tons of salt and sand,
which would be kept separate from the town supply. Staedt said the town of
Wellsville, which only has nine miles of county highways, would be provided
with 1,800 tons of salt and sand. The town of Alma operates three, 10-wheeled
plow trucks. If the town can’t reach an agreement with the county, the county
DPW would then be responsible for plowing and treating its roads during the
winter…a likely budget increase for Allegany County. For years, Alfred and
Clarksville have also rejected the county plan. County roads in Alma include
routes 18, 29 and 38.
