First parking ban of the season starts Tuesday

Winter hasn't officially arrived, but Edmonton's first parking ban has.

A Phase 1 parking ban will start at 7 p.m. to make way for major road clearing, the city announced Tuesday morning.

During Phase 1, crews will be clearing major roads. This includes arterial roads, collector roads, roads in business improvement areas, bus routes and any roads marked with seasonal no-parking signage.

The parking ban is expected to be in effect for three to five days, but the city said timelines will depend on any additional snowfall.

"The specific snowfall event that we encountered over the last couple of days, where we were receiving (snowfalls) one after another with very few breaks in between, does make it challenging for our crews," said Val Dacyk, general supervisor of infrastructure operations for Parks and Roads Services.

"But our crews are out there working 24-7."

Dacyk said highways take priority for snow clearing, so other main roads have had to wait as those main routes have had to be recleared.

Parking bans will be more heavily enforced this year, the city has warned, and any vehicles parked along Phase 1 roads after 7 p.m. will be towed to the nearest cleared road or the closest road not under a parking ban. Owners will also receive a $100 ticket.

"The major change that residents will be seeing right away is the increase in enforcement, so we are going to be actively ticketing and towing with the enforcement piece of the parking bans this year," Dacyk said. 

For information on where to find a towed vehicle, call 311.

Parking along residential streets is allowed during the first phase, and the city said any streets under a parking ban are available for parking once cleared – as long as parking is normally allowed.

As of Tuesday, the city said there were no plans to call a Phase 2 parking ban in residential and industrial areas once Phase 1 is finished, though that may change depending on snowfall.

For more information on parking bans, or to sign up for parking ban notifications, visit edmonton.ca/SafeTravels.