Heavy overnight snowfall blankets Calgary
Calgary drivers had a slippery Tuesday morning commute after the city, along with much of southern Alberta, was hit with a major snowfall overnight.
Southern sections of Calgary received upwards of 30 centimetres of snow and smaller totals were observed in the north, according to Environment Canada.
"Snow will taper off from north to south today," the agency said on its website.
Calgary Transit tweeted Tuesday morning that CTrains were running about 10 minutes behind schedule because of the snow and that some buses might have to bypass stops in the middle of big hills because of slippery conditions.
As of 8:30 a.m. more than 30 routes were on detour because of the snow.
Both the Calgary Board of Education and the Calgary Catholic School District said their school buses are not running but that schools are open.
Environment Canada said drivers should be prepared for dynamic road conditions.
"Visibility may be suddenly reduced at times in heavy snow. Surfaces such as highways, roads, walkways and parking lots may become difficult to navigate due to accumulating snow. Take frequent breaks and avoid strain when clearing snow," the agency said.
Under Calgary's priority snow plan, the city will plow on the highest volume roads first, including Crowchild Trail, Glenmore Trail and Memorial Drive.
The lighter holiday traffic on Monday helped the city get a head start on priority one routes, said Tara Norton-Merrin with the City of Calgary.
"Our crews are out on those major roads clearing the snow and laying down material to help with traction and melting. But you know they will be stuck in the same traffic as everyone else. So you know, just be aware that if you are heading out this morning ... give yourself extra time, drive to conditions and if you see our crews on the roads, give them room to work," she said.
As of Tuesday morning, Environment Canada had issued snowfall warnings for several other places across southern Alberta, from Hinton to Crowsnest Pass and eastward to Cypress Hills.
While the snowstorm was expected to end on Tuesday, Calgary is in store for a brief cold snap, with the temperature falling to –19 C Tuesday afternoon. The wind chill will make it feel like –28, Environment Canada said.
The highs on Wednesday and Thursday are expected to be in the mid minus-20s.
