How Snow Removal Works on Kirksville Streets

Kirksville's Street Maintenance division handles snow plowing and removal from City streets and public property.

The City currently divides roughly 120 miles of streets into six snow-removal zones.

That does not mean every street is cleared at the same moment or receives identical priority during a storm.

Use the City's current snow maps

The City Maps page publishes two separate winter maps:

• Snow Removal Routes Map;
• Emergency Snow Routes Map.

Those maps are more useful than memorizing a list from an old article because routes can change.

What is an emergency snow route?

Kirksville's code allows the City to declare a snow emergency when conditions require snow-removal operations on designated emergency routes.

When a snow emergency is declared, parking restrictions apply on the affected emergency snow routes.

The current code provides for public notice when the emergency is declared and when it ends.

Do not assume ordinary snow conditions automatically mean a formal snow emergency has been declared.

Sidewalks are the property owner's responsibility

The City's current Knowledge Base says owners must keep the sidewalk along and in front of their property free from snow and ice.

After a snowfall, snow must be removed from those sidewalks within 24 hours.

The City also recommends waiting until street plowing is substantially complete where plows are likely to push snow back onto the sidewalk.

That is one of those rare cases where procrastination is temporarily municipal best practice.

Street plowing and driveway clearing are different jobs

The City clears public streets.

It does not mean a City plow will clear the end of a private driveway after snow is pushed from the street.

When shoveling or using a snowblower, do not move private snow back into the roadway in a way that creates a hazard or conflicts with current City rules.

No universal plow time

Street conditions, snowfall rate, wind, ice, equipment and traffic all affect how quickly a route can be completed.

The City does not publish a guaranteed plow time for each address.

If a street remains hazardous after operations are underway, use the current City reporting path rather than assuming crews forgot it.

For non-emergency street issues, see How to Submit and Track a Kirksville Citizen Service Request.

The practical winter rule is simple: watch the current snow maps, keep emergency routes clear when a snow emergency is declared, and handle the sidewalk after the plows have mostly done their part.