Spring street sweeping begins today

With the arrival of spring, City crews are already sweeping the first roadways in the annual spring street sweeping program. Sweeping trucks pass through each neighbourhood cleaning up debris that has settled since last year. The program promotes a sense of cleanliness and pride in the community, reduces dust, and collects sand from winter ice control.

The starting point where street sweeping begins rotates each year. The 2024 campaign begins on the west side, followed by north and then south; however, sweepers may have to alternate zones to avoid waste collection. Weather permitting, no-parking signs will be placed on the street 24 hours before sweeping begins.

Neighborhood street sweeping is completed on weekdays from 7:30 a.m – 3:30 p.m. All residential roadways will be completed over approximately 8 – 10 weeks, with variations due to weather and operational considerations.

Parking Restrictions and Enforcement

Residents are asked to move their vehicle before 7:30 a.m. on street sweeping days to allow for a full sweeping. Parking can resume after 3:30 p.m. each day however, signs will remain in place if the sweepers need to return to the area. When the street sweeping is complete, signs will be removed. Parking tickets of $50 may be issued to vehicles that impede operation. 

“Many people are really excited about having their street cleaned. After several significant snow fall events and us applying lots of sand, sweeping helps take on a huge cleaning chore. When cars are left on the road, we can’t sweep that spot. We get a lot of complaints about people who didn’t move their car so we do issue parking fines to help get that message across. Pay attention to signs or set up reminders so you don’t park on sweeping day”, says Juliane Ruck, Transportation Operations Manager.

Tools and Reminders

Streets are scheduled for sweeping but rain and high winds can cause delays. There are several tools to help residents find out when the sweepers will be in their area:

• Search for an address to find out scheduled sweeping dates here. Confirm a few days before scheduled sweeping.
• Set custom notifications that will notify 24 hours before street sweeping begins on each street by downloading the Lethbridge Loop app from your mobile app store.
• Temporary NO PARKING signs will be placed on the street in neighbourhoods to remind residents to move their vehicles before 7:30 a.m. the next morning.
• Find out where the sweepers are and what zones have been completed by viewing the Live Street Sweeping Map.

Night Sweeping/ Industrial Sweeping

To support sweeping the entire city, night sweeping (weather permitting) for arterial roads, downtown, and roads in the industrial area. Spring night sweeping will start this weekend and continue for approximately six to eight weeks from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m., Sundays to Thursdays to avoid impeding traffic during busier daytime hours.

Why do we sweep?

Each spring, street sweeping crews clean thousands of tonnes of sand, dirt and other debris from roads in Lethbridge. This helps to prevent that material from being washed into the Oldman River via our storm sewer system. It also reduces dust and improves conditions for cycling, walking and driving. Collected sand from winter ice control is reconditioned and reused in the following year’s sanding operations. Residual waste material is disposed of in the landfill.

For more information, visit www.lethbridge.ca/StreetSweeping.

For Public Inquiries:

Call 311 | Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Media Contact:
media@lethbridge.ca