At his weekly press conference on Monday, County Council President Craig Rice made it clear he doesn’t think clearing snow off sidewalks should be a responsibility of Montgomery County.
Rice, who represents the upcounty area, spoke about a proposal from at-large Councilmember Hans Riemer that would create a Sidewalk Snow Removal Plan for the county.
Montgomery County does not plow, remove or treat snow on any sidewalks or trails. Spurred by complaints after this month’s large snowstorm, Riemer wants county-provided snow removal at bus stops, around Metro stations, near schools, along state highways, “highest priority pedestrian routes,” and in urban districts.
Rice, who called the 12-18 inches of snow in Montgomery County “unprecedented” and “an anomaly,” said all the county can do is make property owners aware of their legal responsibility to clear sidewalks within 24 hours of the end of a snowstorm.
“Look, let me just be very clear. The unprecedented nature of this snowstorm is not something that is of the norm here in Montgomery County,” Rice told reporters. “I’ve lived here all my life and very rarely do we get snowstorms like the one we received. The problem is not with our system. The problem, just as every other jurisdiction here in the Washington metropolitan area experienced, we had unprecedented snow.”
Rice also praised the job the county’s Department of Transportation did in plowing and clearing roads.
Pushed for why the county shouldn’t provide the same service for pedestrians and cyclists, Rice said unless the county can identify egregious offenders of the 24-hour law, there’s nothing the government can do.
Rice said he expects the Council to discuss Riemer’s proposal and associated costs in an upcoming hearing. It will also hear from MCDOT and Montgomery Parks as to cost estimates for clearing snow from the Capital Crescent Trail, a proposal championed by Councilmember Roger Berliner.
Check out the segment between the 2:04 and 3:24 marks of this press conference video from Montgomery Community Media for Rice’s take on clearing sidewalk snow. He further discusses it between the 5:01 to 6:21 marks of the video.
So, what do you think?