Jefferson County Announces Important Snow Removal Updates
Jefferson County’s Road and Bridge team is getting ready for the upcoming winter season, and the snow that comes with it. Due to a statewide shortage of truck drivers, Jefferson County Road and Bridge revised its Snow Removal Procedure for the upcoming 2021-22 winter season (see below for details). We appreciate your understanding as we work through this staffing shortage.
As we approach the time of year where snow begins to fall in Jeffco, we are encouraging community members to work from home whenever possible on days where snow storms affect the roads. Additionally, if you plan to visit a Jefferson County facility during snowy conditions, please visit www.jeffco.us prior to driving. There may be county closures in effect to help keep the roads open for plows (these alerts are shown on a banner at the top of all pages of the website). Many county services are available online and can be accessed on the Online Services web page.
Qualified individuals with a Class B Commercial Drivers License (CDL) and a minimum of one year of experience are encouraged to apply to join our team. Full details on snow removal in unincorporated Jefferson County can be found at www.jeffco.us/snow. Key highlights are included below.
Snow Removal Procedures for 2021-2022:
Plowing and application of traction materials will take place in four phases during a storm. The order in which streets are plowed in each phase is based on the following definitions of priority:
- Priority 1 – Main arterial streets that provide for high traffic volumes.
- Priority 2 – Major subdivision collectors, school zones and school bus routes.
- Priority 3 – Residential or other local roads that carry moderate to low traffic volumes.
- Priority 4 – Cul-de-sacs or other dead-end roads carrying very low traffic volumes.
Plains Areas: If snow accumulations are six inches or less and melting IS forecasted to occur within 72 hours, snow plowing will not occur on Priority 3 and 4 streets. Please note that we do not remove packed snow and ice from residential streets that are passable by passenger cars.
Mountain Areas: Snow plowing and application of traction materials will NOT take place from 9 p.m. to 3 a.m. When snow depths are seriously impeding vehicle mobility and melting is NOT forecasted to occur within 72 hours, Priority 3 and 4 streets will be plowed. Please note that we do not remove packed snow and ice from residential streets that are passable by passenger cars.
Overview: Jeffco’s Road and Bridge Division is responsible for snow removal on 2,900 lane miles of paved roads and 700 lane miles of gravel roads in the unincorporated areas of the county. One lane mile is a 10-foot wide section of road one mile long. State highways, private roads and newly constructed roads that have not been accepted by formal resolution of the Board of County Commissioners are not included.
Requests for Emergency Snow Removal: All requests for emergency snowplowing should go to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Dept. 303-277-0211. If the request is valid, they will notify the Road & Bridge Division, and we will respond as soon as possible.