This follow-up to the county's Snow Summit was presented to the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Transportation Committee on July 19, 2016.

1. County of Fairfax, Virginia
Snow Summit Follow-Up
Board Transportation Committee
July 19, 2016
Neil Freschman
Chief, Traffic Engineering Section
Fairfax County Department of Transportation
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2. County of Fairfax, Virginia
• Major blizzard January 22-23
• 24 to 30 inch snow
accumulation
– County government closed noon on
Friday, January 22 through Tuesday,
January 26
– WMATA and Connector service did
not operate from January 22 until
limited service was restored on
Monday and Tuesday, January 25 and
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– FCPS closed Monday, January 25
through Friday, January 29
Winter Storm Jonas Summary
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3. County of Fairfax, Virginia
• Presentations
– Department of Public Works and Environmental Services
– Fairfax County Public Schools
– Fire and Rescue Department
– Virginia Department of Transportation
• Issues discussed at the Summit
– Strengths of snow removal efforts
– Lessons learned from event
– Challenges
– Snow clearing of County assets
– Comparison of local snow clearing ordinances in neighboring
jurisdictions
March 1, 2016 Snow Summit
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4. County of Fairfax, Virginia
• Pre-storm public education
• Arrange for more heavy equipment
• Reconcile County and VDOT maps of public roads
• Develop strategy for pedestrian safety issues
• Explore strategies for clearing sidewalks and trails near
transit centers and schools
• Avoid dumping snow on trails, sidewalks, and bus stops
• Community engagement and volunteer engagement
• Investigate snow shoveling ordinance
• Drop-in center for kids during school closures
Opportunities for Improvement
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5. County of Fairfax, Virginia
Follow Up Items
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6. County of Fairfax, Virginia
• Reconcile County and VDOT Road
Maps
– VDOT maintenance / County
maintenance
– “Orphan” roadways
• Pedestrian Safety Issues
– Identify pedestrian issues
• Sidewalks and bus stops not cleared
• Pedestrians walking in roadways
• Plowing snow onto sidewalks
– Consider possible future snow clearing
of sidewalks and trails
– Consider snow hauling
Department of Transportation
VDOT Snow Removal Routes Identified in Black
Source: Washington Post, February 10, 2016
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7. County of Fairfax, Virginia
• Connector Bus Shelter snow
removal
– More than 500 Connector bus
shelters countywide
– Snow clearing from
approximately 150 shelters by
advertising contractor
– Remainder had no snow
clearing
– Advertising contractor not able
to undertake additional snow
removal
– Determine whether there are
alternatives for cleaning snow
from bus shelters
Department of Transportation
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8. County of Fairfax, Virginia
• Office of County Attorney
– Virginia enabling legislation (VA Code 15.2-2025) allows for a
County snow removal ordinance
• Must include reasonable criteria, timeframe and exceptions
• Park Authority
– Pilot “Snow Day” program for children 6 to 10 years old
beginning November 1, 2016, at four sites in the County
– Registration in advance or on site
– Will operate on days when FCPS are closed, but County
government is open
– Children over 10 years of age may access RECenter facilities
independently
Other Agencies
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9. County of Fairfax, Virginia
• Department of Public Works and Environmental Services
– Investigating possible sidewalk clearing strategy and developing
projected costs
• Office of Emergency Management
– Prepared After Action Report – March 28, 2016
– Recommendations regarding pre-planning, communication and
resources
• VDOT
– County has requested that VDOT develop unit cost for hauling
snow
– FCDOT and VDOT would need to determine service locations
and hauling locations
Other Agencies (cont.)
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10. County of Fairfax, Virginia
• Snow emergency routes
– Routes that need to be open for first responders and snow
removal efforts
– Conflicting public information
• County ordinance indicates approximately 1,000 miles of
snow emergency routes
• Other public information indicates approximately 1,500 miles
• Most of the additional mileage is local streets – many with
existing parking
• Designations have not been done for some time
Other Snow Issues
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11. County of Fairfax, Virginia
Snow Emergency Routes
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12. County of Fairfax, Virginia
Discussion
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