Winter Wise Program

Winter Preparedness and Safety

Winter in the Lower Mainland can mean a variety of weather - from ice and snow, to wind and power outages, to rain and heavy flooding. The information on this page will help you learn about the City’s operations during these events, as well as your responsibilities and how to be prepared for any emergency.

Before a winter storm arrives, plan ahead so you can comfortably and safely carry on during the winter season. Please visit our Winter Preparedness and Safety webpage for information on preparing your home and vehicle, tips for power outages and personal winter safety tips.

Winter Weather Forecast Update - March 4, 2024,  10 a.m. 

  • With the fairly intense winter event overnight, Public Works crews were out all night clearing the City's Priority 1 Routes. Most are clear with a few small sections with slush.  
  • Crews moved on to Priority 2 Routes and will soon be moving onto Priority 3.  We have 12 trucks out with two of them plowing and salting Monday garbage routes so that collection can take place as scheduled.
  • The forecast calls for temperatures to climb up to +5C today, which will cause snow melt, with clear skies through tonight  and temperatures dropping to -3C. Public Works will have 5 trucks working overnight on salting operations to address icing concerns.
  • With clear skies and low overnight temperatures most of the week, Public Works crews will continue to work overnight to address icing issues. 

Report an Area of Concern During a Snow Event

To report an area of concern, please use our real-time Coquitlam Snow Response Request tool. Note:  While snow is falling or until primary roads are cleared, the City will not be addressing local roads or lanes.

  1. Snow Removal Priorities
  2. Parking Restrictions
  3. Waste Collection
  4. Resident Responsibilities

City Roads and Streets

During a snow event, City roads are plowed according to a priority system aimed at supporting public safety and public transportation access:

  • Priority 1 - Maintain accessibility for emergency vehicles and transit vehicles on collector, arterial and emergency and bus routes that connect major sections of the community.
  • Priority 2 - Maintenance of safe travel routes and accessibility for vehicles on streets classified as Priority 2 routes, including non-arterial and collector routes that provide access to school sites, community care facilities, as well as subzones that contain a high percentage of local roads with grades in excess of 10%, during icing and storm conditions. Priority 2 route response may be advanced, or delayed, due to event intensity, severity or duration.
  • Priority 3 - Maintain safe travel routes and accessibility for vehicles on all remaining routes. Clearing these routes may be advanced or delayed depending on the weather event’s intensity, severity or duration.

Private roads are not maintained by the City. Residents need to contact their Property Management Company or Strata for concerns related to their roads.

View the Coquitlam Snow Response Plan Map (PDF).

City Facilities and Parks Snow Response  

During a snow event, parking lots and access walkways at City facilities are cleared according to a priority system aimed at supporting access to City-owned facilities. 

Additionally, multi-use pathways that connect transit or school routes, as well as pedestrian pathways that allow safe passage along routes fronting civic property to schools, are cleared if school is in session.  

Every effort is made to ensure parking facilities and pedestrian entrances and exits to Coquitlam City facilities including sidewalks are cleared for accessibility of all patrons. These priorities may change due to several factors including event intensity, severity and duration and available equipment. 

Priority 1 - City Facilities Snow Clearing

  • Resumption of access to City facilities including parking facilities and public access 
    • City-owned facilities are defined as the pools, rink, community centres/activity centres, City Hall, libraries, Maillardville Community Centre, Place Des Arts, and Evergreen Cultural Centre, Public Safety Building and Fire Halls 
  • Maintenance of pedestrian entrances and exits to all city facilities (except Society buildings) including sidewalks that surround a facility but do not border the street 
  • Society buildings such as Place des Arts, Public Libraries, Evergreen Cultural Centre, Mackin Museum, Foster Tennis and Hoy Creek Hatchery have pedestrian entrances cleared by operators of these facilities.
    • Priority 1 responses will occur when resources are available and may be advanced, or delayed, due to event intensity, severity or duration and may depend upon the operating hours of each facility.  

Priority 2 - Snow Sidewalk, Pathway & Multi-Use-Pathway Clearing  

  • Sidewalks fronting open City facilities 
  • Multi-Use Pathways connecting to transit 
  • Frontages linking safe routes to school if schools are open 
    • Priority 2 responses will typically occur after priority 1 responsibilities have been met; however, the response may be advanced, or delayed due to event intensity, severity or duration. Pathways include multi-use pathways.