Here's what you need to know about snow removal in Montreal

After the first major snowfall of the new year struck Montreal this past weekend, locals can now add tricky snow removal operations to their list of pesky winter annoyances.

From finding places to park (and not park), how snow removal will work under curfew, and the city’s snow-clearing schedule, here are a few important things to keep in your winter coat pocket as we officially enter snow removal season.

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First and foremost, driving when it’s snowing in Montreal can be disastrous but trying to find a free parking spot is even worse.

To facilitate snow-clearing operations throughout the winter, the Agence de mobilité durable and the Ville de Montréal will make 1,212 free parking spots available in certain parking areas.

The rules are simple: As soon as the city of Montreal orders the loading of snow, residents can park their vehicles for free in any of the designated parking lots (listed below) as of 3 pm.

They must be sure to park only in designated spaces, avoiding areas reserved for permit holders. They must also remove their vehicles from the parking lots by 7 am the following day, when regular parking operations will resume.

The following parking lots are available for parking during snow loading:

For more information, visit the Stationnement de Montréal website.

No.	Location	Total places available	Restrictions	Google Map
AHUNTSIC-CARTIERVILLE
335	Fleury between Chambord and Sacré-Coeur	22	Hourly spaces	Open
PLATEAU-MONT-ROYAL
139	Sherbrooke between Calixa-Lavallée and Parc Lafontaine	113	Hourly spaces	Open
270	St-Dominique between Bernard and St-Viateur	43	Except reserved places	Open
ROSEMONT-LA PETITE-PATRIE
24	Boyer between Beaubien and St-Zotique	100		Open
73	6th Avenue between Dandurand and Masson	17	Southside only Time section	Open
75	8th Avenue between Dandurand and Masson	27		Open
191	St-André between Jean-Talon and Bélanger	45		Open
302	St-André between Beaubien East and Bellechasse	19		Open
303	St-André between Beaubien and Bellechasse	31	Except reserved spaces	Open
SOUTH WEST
243	Trinitarians north of the Vérendrye	735		Open
VILLE-MARIE
207	Notre-Dame between De l’Inspecteur and De la Cathédrale	36	West Side Only Hourly spaces	Open
400	Mansfield côté ouest between St-Antoine and St-Jacques	24		Open

The Ville de Montréal also has a “snow removal operations map” where citizens can see when your street will be cleared of snow. It shows planning for snow removal operations and incentive parking lots, where you can park your car for free during snow removal operations.

Montrealers can also download the Info-Neige MTL app (or visit the website), which alerts drivers of the snow removal status of their most-frequented streets and shows percentages of how much of the snow removal has been completed.

❄️Plus de 18 cm de neige sont tombés sur nos rues depuis cette nuit. La @MTL_Ville déclenche un chargement de neige dès dimanche, 7h. Différentes mesures seront adaptées pour permettre aux citoyens de déplacer leur véhicule avant le début du couvre-feu, à 20 h (1/6) #polmtl pic.twitter.com/nmFOyUkPnL

— Valérie Plante (@Val_Plante) January 16, 2021

In general, Montreal boroughs put up temporary no parking signs before 3 pm for snow removal operations that take place between 7 pm and 7 am of that day. When no parking signs are placed before 8 pm, that’s for operations from 7 am to 7 pm the following day.

City crews place salt on sidewalks as soon as they start to get slippery and plow sidewalks when more than 2.5 cm of powder has accumulated.

Throughout Montreal, it is prohibited to clear snow onto the sidewalks or streets from private property.

Snow removal companies also need a permit to be authorized to dump snow in specific spots across the island.

Happy snow removal, Montreal! You might be best suited to just stay inside until April.