Whose roads get plowed first when the snow falls in the Whatcom lowlands?
When and if your street gets plowed, and whether you can get to work during a snow emergency, depends on where you live and where you need to go.
Roads across Whatcom County — from state highways to remote cul-de-sacs — are assigned a level of service that depends on the type of road and how many people drive it daily, according to state, county and city officials.
When a major snowfall hits lowland Whatcom County:
▪ Commuter and bus routes get priority.
▪ Residential streets and rural roads with few homes are the last to see a snowplow.
▪ People should shovel their sidewalks, city officials said.
▪ De-icer, salt and sand is applied as needed or as staffing and equipment is available.
“We don’t like to use much sand,” said Dan Larsen, street maintenance supervisor for the city of Bellingham. “We use sand on hills when we have traction issues — and at intersections.”
Larsen said the city prefers to use salt or a brine mixture that includes beet juice.
Sand can harm the environment because it contains phosphorus, which promotes algae growth and depletes oxygen in the water.
It also gets tracked into homes and stores, and it must be vacuumed off the streets when the snow melts.
“We never put sand in the watershed, and we try not to put it downtown, Larsen said.
Bellingham
Bellingham’s 278-mile street network is divided into principal, secondary and collector roads for plowing purposes, said Amy Cloud, spokeswoman for the city’s Public Works Department.
Plowing priority goes to “principal arterials” such as Meridian Street, Lakeway Drive, Northwest Avenue, Bakerview and Hannegan roads, Woburn Street, Old Fairhaven Parkway and State, James and Iowa streets.
After that comes roads including Boulevard Street, Alabama Street, Barkley Boulevard, Britton Road, Yew Street Road and Samish Way, followed by lesser-traveled collector streets.
Crews also plow streets used by school buses and the Whatcom Transportation Authority, she said.
Whatcom County
A similar system applies to Whatcom County’s 960 miles of roadways, said Joe Rutan, Whatcom County engineer and assistant director of public works.
Priority goes to “maintenance level 1” roads such as Hannegan, Northwest, Smith and Birch Bay-Lynden Road, Rutan said.
Bus routes may also be included in this maintenance level, he said.
County roads that get plowed next are “level 2” paved roads with at least 25 homes — such as Laurel, Kline, Elder, Potter and Mosquito Lake roads, Rutan said.
When freezing weather threatens, some roads are treated with an anti-icing compound, he said. De-icing and sanding will continue as long as resources allow.
State highways
Interstate 5 gets highest priority among state highways in Whatcom County, according to information at the state Department of Transportation website.
WSDOT crews treat I-5 with de-icer and continually plow the road when it’s snowing.
After that, crews clear Guide Meridian, Mount Baker Highway east to Deming, and Blaine/Grandview road.
Next priority is Highway 9, Badger Road and Mount Baker Highway east to the ski area. Lastly, plows are directed to Pole Road, Reese Hill Road and Chuckanut Drive.
This story was originally published December 2, 2019 at 5:00 AM.
