Some Louisville roadways that normally don’t receive plowing following heavy snowfall may see help from the city beginning Wednesday as efforts to rid streets of the historic levels of snow and ice precipitated by Winter Storm Blair continue.
On top of the Louisville Metro Snow Team’s efforts to continue improving road conditions on the county’s 110 designated snow routes, the team will start clearing additional routes starting Wednesday morning, Mayor Craig Greenberg said during a news conference Tuesday. Crews will prioritize routes used by buses for Jefferson County Public Schools as the district mulls whether students can return to classes Thursday.
Roads important for operations at other local institutions, like the University of Louisville, branches of the Louisville Free Public Library and TARC, will also be prioritized.
“I’ve asked our hard-working Snow Team to keep going, to keep working, to keep the city moving back to where it wants to be even quicker,” Greenberg said.
The decision to clear more routes in the aftermath of a snow event is unprecedented, but the significant impacts felt by the city warrant additional work, Greenberg said.
Plows with the Kentucky Department of Transportation fight to keep I-265 clear during the snow event, Sunday, Jan. 5 2025 in Louisville Ky.
The Snow Team has worked continuous 12-hour shifts — spreading about 25 million pounds of salt — to treat and plow roads since Sunday morning when snowfall started in Louisville. According to the National Weather Service, Louisville received roughly 10.5 inches of snow on Sunday and Monday.
The storm eased up around midday Monday, and although conditions on Louisville’s network of snow routes have improved, Greenberg said he feels more can be done to help the city’s residents.
“We do have the resources to continue. We have salt that’s still available,” he said. “We can keep doing this for a few more days.”
JCPS officials have called off school for the district through Wednesday, with a decision for Thursday set to come sometime before 5 a.m. the morning of, district spokesperson Carolyn Callahan said during the news conference.
Callahan said conditions of side streets, where many bus stops reside and entrance ways to some schools connect to, are a key consideration for whether to call a snow day.
Callahan also pointed to low temperatures following the winter storm that will factor into the decision of whether to have school Thursday, though all JCPS buildings still have heat, she noted.
Additional help on side routes, Callahan said, will hopefully alleviate safety concerns presented by these roads and set the stage for district operations to return to normal.
Contact reporter Killian Baarlaer at kbaarlaer@gannett.com or @bkillian72 on X.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Louisville winter storm: Additional roads to be plowed, Greenberg says