Snow Removal

[xuth.livejournal.com]

If you have mountains of snow around you, the next couple of days are the days to get rid of it so you don't have to work around this the next time the snow falls. Since the temperatures are in the 40s and 50s for the next couple of days it can legally be put into the streets where it will melt much quicker.
The explicit law that allows this and gives guidance as to how you should do it is :
Sec. 12-9. Shoveling snow on streets.

• (a) No owner, tenant or occupant of land or a building, or any agent thereof, in this city shall cause any snow or ice from said land or building to be placed in any public way in this city unless said snow or ice is broken up and spread evenly, to a thickness of no more than three inches, during daylight hours, when the mean temperature for that day is above 40 degrees Fahrenheit.


• (b) Whoever violates any of the provisions of subsection (a) of this section shall be fined in accordance with section 1-11.

Comments

[clevernonsense.livejournal.com]

I really want to spread a nice 3-inch layer of ice&snow along all of mass ave for several miles.

[thetathx1138.livejournal.com]

I don't think the attendant posts here about "OMG WHAT HAPPENED TO MASS AVE" would make the schadenfreude worth it.

[clevernonsense.livejournal.com]

See, when you're expecting those comments it makes it all even better.

[perspicuity.livejournal.com]

i wanna see a snow placing robot that would use snow for ink and print slogans and banners and other such along the road way while it's doing its thing.

mmm, snow roomba? it could use a flamethrower to melt snow, and double as a watch dog. FWOOOOOOSH - sorry mr ticket person.

#

[surrealestate.livejournal.com]

If you did this, you would be my hero. Unfortunately, I don't think Somerville has several miles of Mass Ave in it. But if you covered the roads from Davis Square out 100 yards in each direction, that would suffice in my eyes.

[chumbolly.livejournal.com]

Wow. Could we, as a community get any more informed on arcane parking and snow regulations? I seriously think this post is Awesome, and I am definitely going to go kick a snowbank into the street tonight--or break my foot trying!

[pierceheart.livejournal.com]

Could we, as a community get any more informed on arcane parking and snow regulations?

like having to park with your right side tires to the curb, except on one way streets? (ie, no parking counter to the flow of traffic)

[ron_newman]

Somerville used to allow parking in the wrong direction, like Medford still does. I'm not sure why Somerville changed this; it was often convenient.

[pierceheart.livejournal.com]

Sometimes it's more than convenient, it's safer:

Putnam Ave in Ten Hills, on the hilly portion, when it's only been plowed to a three inch hard pack - facing downhill with the left tires to the curb is sometimes the only way to get out of a parking spot.

Had I been ticketed, I would have appealed it as such.

[treacle-well.livejournal.com]

But confusing as hell. I live in an area of Medford where lots of cars park in the "wrong" direction. Visitors to the area are frequently confused as to whether or not the roads here are "one way" (they aren't) because the number of cars parked on opposite sides of the road yet facing the same direction give the erroneous impression that they are. I think that lack of clarity can result in unsafe situations.

[xuth.livejournal.com]

The more dangerous/fun (pick one) thing to do would be to make a one way street look like it's a two way street.

[xuth.livejournal.com]

If it weren't arcane, it wouldn't be worth posting because it would merely be general knowledge. In this case it is not well known, useful and timely, hence I thought it worth posting.

[chumbolly.livejournal.com]

Just in case you thought I was being sarcastic in my original comment, please know that I was not intending to be so. I really did appreciate your post because (a) I've secretly kicked snow into the streets on warm days thinking it was a good idea; (b) I like being hyper-informed about Somerville laws and regs, (c) I enjoyed reading this particular law because I think its hilarious, in part because it reads like the kind of law I would dream up if I were a lawmaker-upper (seriously, an even thickness of three inches?! Mean temperature of 40 degrees? Who knows today's mean temperature?!). So no criticism from me intended--the sort of information you provided is precisely why I read this journal.

[ron_newman]

Seriously, this is probably a good time to salt and then dig out those annoying frozen corners -- several of which I've nearly fallen on while walking around the neighborhood.

(Waiting now for the inevitable brickbats to come my way....)

[http://users.livejournal.com/_mattt/]

As for the 9+ foot tall mountain of snow at the corner of Boston and Prichard blocking the sidewalk, well, I'm still going to let nature take its course with that one. I'm hoping it will be gone by August, but at this point, I'm not so sure.

And although it's not explicitly stated in the law, I do implore people to use their best judgment when dispersing snow in the street. For example, packing down a 3-in. stretch of snow covering the entire street around a blind curve would probably be a bad thing. Sure, it mught be funny to watch, unless you're a pedestrian directly in the path of an oncoming vehicle.

[cnoocy]

Is that a state law or a city law?

[xuth.livejournal.com]

Sorry, it's a Somerville city law. It can be found here (http://library2.municode.com/default/DocView/11580/1/90/91)
Since Somerville contracts elsewhere to host it's ordinances, here's a Somerville page (http://www.somervillema.gov/Section.cfm?org=Clerk&page=107) pointing at it.
At this point I'm unable to find an equivalent ordinance in Cambridge either with or without the exception for high temperature days.

Speaking of pilpul...

[surrealestate.livejournal.com]

Are there instructions regarding how to calculate the mean temperature? And whether "day" means a 24-hour period midnight to midnight, 6am-6am, just the daylight hours...? :)

(Obviously these couple of days when the lows are above 40 are easy enough, but I'm rather curious if there is an official number to go by when it isn't.)

This is an awesome law.

Re: Speaking of pilpul...

[xuth.livejournal.com]

Maybe a call to 311 to find out? I'm curious but not that motivated. I still can't find anything in the Cambridge ordinances that even prohibit dumping snow in the road let alone allowances for it in high temperatures (since I now live on the Cambridge side of things, this is a bit more pertinent to me.

Re: Speaking of pilpul...

[enochs-fable.livejournal.com]

Love the subject header here. :)