County crews follow a priority system based on the Winter maintenance policy (119.9 KB)  to manage snow and ice on winter roads.  

High-volume and high-speed roads are cleared and sanded first. 

Ice control

Crews continuously monitor and address concerns on all roads, in order of priority, based on weather conditions.

Depending on the location, the County uses a variety of methods to manage icy roads, including sand, salt and rock chips.

• A sand/salt mixture is used on the majority of road types in urban and rural Strathcona County.
  • Salt is not as effective at cold temperatures, so the amount of salt decreases as the temperature drops.
• Rock chips are used to manage icy conditions on Priority 4 residential roads, Priority 3 and 4 rural roads, and in County-owned parking lots.

Priority system and map

Winter Roads 101 (435.8 KB)  provides an overview of the priorities for urban and rural Strathcona County. Crews work in both areas at the same time.

Use this interactive map to see which roads are Priority 1, 2, 3 or 4.

Launch full interactive map

Download pdf versions of the winter priorities maps:

• Urban winter road priorities (3.9 MB)
• Rural winter road priorities (3.2 MB)

Urban snow clearing priorities

Priority 1 - Major thoroughfares and arterials
Snow accumulation of 2-5 cm
Cleared within 12 hours after accumulation stops

Priority 2 – Minor arterials and school drop zones 
Snow accumulation of 5-7 cm 
Cleared within 12 hours after accumulation stops 
(drop zones within 72 hours)

Priority 3 – Snow Routes (collector roads)
Snow accumulation of 15 cm
Cleared within 8 days after accumulation stops
See a complete list of snow routes (185.9 KB)

Priority 4 – Residential streets
Snow accumulation of 7 cm compacted snow
Cleared within 10 days

Rural snow clearing priorities

Priority 1 – Major industrial roads 
Snow accumulation of 2-5 cm 
Cleared within 12 hours

Priority 2 – Major thoroughfares that service schools and recreation facilities 
Snow accumulation of 5-7 cm 
Cleared within 12 hours (after priority 1 cleared)

Priority 3 – Remaining grid roads 
Snow accumulation of 5-7 cm 
Cleared within 72 hours (after priority 2 cleared)

Priority 4 – Country residential and Hamlet roads 
Snow accumulation of 5-7 cm 
Cleared within 48 hours (after priority 3 cleared)

Highways

The Province of Alberta is responsible for winter maintenance on all highways throughout Strathcona County. Visit our highway maintenance page to learn more.

Transit stops and parking lots

Strathcona County Transit bus stops are cleared along with sidewalks and trails. Priority is given to stops located along arterial roads and then those located along collector roads.

County-owned parking lots are cleared after school drop off are completed, after at least five centimetres of snowfall.

Stay in the know

Stay up to date on winter road activities, including parking bans and updates on road conditions.

• Follow us on Twitter
• Like us on Facebook
• Sign up for snow route parking ban alerts
• Sign up for Winter Roads eNews
• Follow online snow clearing progress maps: Snow routes or Residential streets

Further information: