Snow & Ice Control

City crews maintain more than 1,000 kilometres of roads in Regina which is nearly the entire length of Saskatchewan. We use a variety of snow and ice control methods including prioritized snow plowing and sanding to get roads to good winter driving condition so everyone can travel safely.

Sidewalk Snow & Ice Removal

Snow and ice on residential sidewalks is the responsibility of the property owner/resident. It’s important to keep your sidewalks shovelled and sanded to help pedestrians walk safely and easily down the street.

All properties centrally located within Schedule B must clear ice and snow from the sidewalk adjacent to their property within 24 hours of a snow or ice event. Businesses, apartments and vacant lots outside of downtown must clear ice and snow from sidewalks within 48 hours. Snow removed from private property should be stored on their private yard, not on streets, sidewalks or boulevards.

Effective January 1, 2022, all property owners city-wide must clear sidewalks following a snow or ice event. City Council approved Sidewalk Snow Clearing as part of The Clean Property Bylaw to help keep our neighbourhood sidewalks accessible for all users. Learn more about the new provision.

Sandbox Map

The City provides free sand/salt mix at 19 sandboxes throughout Regina for residents to help make icy sidewalks safe. Bring a small container and something to scoop with. Crews monitor and fill the sandboxes as needed after they attend to ice control activities on the priority road network. Should your community sandbox be empty, please contact Service Regina at 306-777-7000 to let us know and crews will refill it at their earliest availability.

Snow Plowing

During a heavy snowfall, our top priority is safety and traffic flow to ensure vehicles and people can move throughout the city, especially on roads with high volumes of traffic. We plow snow according to the priority categories outlined in the Road Category Map.

View the Road Category Map

Residential Snow Plow

Residential streets are only plowed after substantial snowfall (15 cm of snow from a single event) and when weather and time permits. The community is divided into sectors to plow more than 500 kilometres of residential roads. Residents can help crews plow streets faster by parking in their driveway or garage.

After a major snow event, crews also work to plow alleys that receive garbage and recycling pick up and try to provide residents with access to their alley parking. Because alleys are narrow, they are plowed by trucks with a blade on the front instead of a plow. This equipment leaves a snow ridge that residents will need to clear.

Ice Control

Streets are sanded with a sand and salt mixture and the order on a priority basis through the Winter Road Category roads. Sand and salt are applied selectively on sections of roads including intersections, bridges, ramps and merging lanes, curves, in front of schools and at intersections. Ice control is provided immediately after a road is plowed following a snow event, or as required and weather permitting. Ice control is also provided on roadways with icy spots or along areas leading up to an intersection.

The City also uses a liquid salt to control ice on small sections of streets and roads as an alternative to the traditional dry salt/sand mix. This product is added to the sand before being applied to the road, which helps it stick to the pavement better and returns roads to good driving condition faster. Liquid salt is also less corrosive and reduces the overall amount of dry salt and sand the City uses each winter.