Residential street sweeping to start this week in city

By Al Beeber - Lethbridge Herald on April 15, 2023.

Herald photo by Al Beeber City street sweepers make a pass along a southside roadway during a media event Friday announcing sweeping operations will soon be getting underway.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDabeeber@lethbridgeherald.com

If you don’t move, you will lose and possibly get ticketed.

Yes, it’s the season for residential street sweeping and City crews will be hitting the road.

On Monday, signs will be placed in the first zone with sweeping starting in the far south area of the city on Tuesday.

Sweeping will be done weekdays from 7:30 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. with the expectation it will be finished by the end of June, Julianne Ruck, Transportation Operations Manager, told media on Friday.

After southside neighbourhoods are finished, sweepers will head across the river to West Lethbridge and then move to the northside.

Vehicles need to be moved by 7:30 a.m. in scheduled areas so sweepers can thoroughly clean streets, Ruck said, adding crews won’t return if they have to miss spots because roadways are obstructed. Parking tickets of $25 could be issued if vehicles aren’t moved before sweeping operations begin.

Weather, of course, can cause delays in the work but residents can find out when their street is scheduled by going online at https://www.lethbridge.ca/living-here/getting-around/Streets-and-Roads/Pages/Street-Sweeping.aspx to search their address.

On that page, residents will also see the opportunity to sign up for a street sweeping notification.

People can also find out sweeping dates by using the free Lethbridge Loop app which is available for Android and Apple operating systems.

While residential streets are being cleaned, said Ruck, there will be simultaneous night-time sweeping of arterial roads as well as streets in the downtown and industrial area.

Street sweeping prevents contaminated material from entering the storm sewer system and eventually the Oldman River, said Ruck.

Sand picked up by sweepers is cleaned and stored and is mixed into material used in the following year’s sanding operations.