BILLINGS — Snow problems are piling up for Billings residents as the city works to finish plowing residential streets following recent heavy snowfall.
Slippery roads have made it difficult to pick up children from school, says Billings mother Freddie Bennett.
“When you're trying to pick your kids up and you get stuck, it's not fun,” said Bennett, who lives near Newman Elementary School in south Billings.
The conditions have raised concerns about safety near school zones and hospitals as commuters and pedestrians face challenges navigating the snow-covered streets.
“If the roads aren't plowed by the schools, it puts the kids at risk who have to walk home, and that was one of my big concerns was watching kids crossing and parents trying to get out of the way," said Bennett.
The City of Billings Street Traffic Division has prioritized clearing the city's main arterial streets, which are expected to be fully plowed by Friday. Residential plowing began Sunday, with the city divided into six zones.
“This year it seemed interesting when it came to plowing streets, the zones, how they had it scheduled, looked like a good idea, but the amount of time it took to do each zone has caused problems for zones three, four, five, and six," said Bennett, who lives in zone 4.
Days after the storm, several zones remain unplowed. City officials explained that snow removal is slow and costly, impacted by high operating costs and fluctuating weather conditions.
“When a storm comes in, it starts snowing, we take the weather before, during, and after to try to make the best plan we can and decide when to activate residential plowing," said Derick Miller, the city's Street Traffic Division manager. “Residential plowing is probably one of our most contentious things that we do. We get more calls on that than anything else.”
Miller said the city hires a contractor for residential snow removal, K2 Civil Inc., to help clear more streets than could usually be done. The contract requires six plows minimum that operate 24 hours a day.
“It takes time. The contractor has those blades throughout town at job sites. They're expensive and it takes time for the contractor to move those in," said Miller.
K2 Civil has handled the plowing job for the past several years, and Knife River is the only other company capable of handling the job in Billings. Miller said that if they were to hire other local contractors, the costs would increase significantly.
“A lot of the contractors are (resistant) to get the blades out there and bid on it even if they do have it," said Miller.
The city estimates it could take up to 10 days to clear the snow, though they hope to finish by the weekend. Some residential zones have taken longer due to shorter streets or hills, while those with longer, wider streets go by faster. Each day of snow removal costs $40,000, or about $300 an hour per plow, roughly $8 per Billings household.
“You figure out that we're running these blades 24 hours a day, so it's overtime, shift differential if they pay them. Then, of course, you've got to pay the higher wages required by Davis Bacon wages," said Miller.
In response to the growing complaints received both online and through their phone system, the city plans to re-evaluate how they contract next year by possibly adding more contractors or adjusting their budget. For now, they ask residents to remain patient.
“We always want to be better, but it always comes with a cost, and what do the citizens of Billings want?” said Miller. “Just be patient with us. They're out there doing their best and there's a lot going on and we're all trying our best out there to be the best we can.”
For residents such as Bennett, the work has also been appreciated, but improvements in communication and prioritization of certain areas would be welcomed to help alleviate the problems.
“I think everyone's just doing the best that they can with what they have, but it would be great to have some communication on how those things happen. Is it possible that schools can make it to the top of the list so we don't have to worry about kids walking home and getting in an accident?” said Bennett. "If taxes went up, but it meant that our streets could be plowed safely and quickly, I think that matters more than keeping taxes what we consider reasonable."
