As of February 1, the Municipality will begin a pilot project for winter roads, also known as white roads. The neighbourhoods affected by this pilot project are:
- Hendrick Farm
- Meredith
- Chelsea Creek
What is a Winter Ecoroad?
It is a method that consists in limiting the spreading of salt and abrasives to the maximum and favoring the scraping of the road. It is a concept used in several cities in Quebec in order to preserve the environment. Road salts are particularly harmful to vulnerable areas such as wetlands and drinking water sources.
There are several criteria that must be met in order to promote this type of ecotour road. The general route of the road, the type of traffic and the speed limit are examples. The neighbourhoods involved in the pilot project were selected because they met all the safety criteria.
For safety reasons, salt and abrasive will be used when road conditions are deemed hazardous, such as during freezing rain.
Only secondary roads will become ecoroads. The following collector roads are excluded from the pilot project:
- Chemin Cecil
- Chemin Ladyfield
- Chemin Jean-Paul Lemieux
Adapt your driving
Scraping leaves a layer of compacted snow on the ground that may require you to adapt your driving, as is already the case for winter conditions (reduced speed, safe distance, etc.).
To learn more about Winter Ecoroads, click here.
