Which cities clear heavy snow piles from driveways in southern Ontario?

After snowfalls, homeowners are often left with heavy piles of snow at the end of their driveway after plows clear the streets.

It can be a difficult task to remove the snow, slush, or ice and make the driveway accessible once again.

For some, including seniors and those with disabilities, it can be impossible.

The City of Mississauga recently approved a plan to clear those troublesome piles, which are called windrows, from all residents’ driveways starting in late 2025.

Windrows have been a significant source of growing public frustration in recent years that hit new heights in early 2023, culminating in several isolated incidents in which angry residents attacked Mississauga snow plow drivers and their machines.

And so Mississauga’s plan to clear the bottom of all residents’ driveways, though it still could be changed, is likely welcome news to many in the city.

With the recent move, INsauga.com has taken a look at municipalities in the Greater Toronto Area to see which ones clear windrows for their residents.

Overall, the vast majority do not provide the service to all of their residents. Toronto, Vaughan and Richmond Hill are the exception.

Though in Richmond Hill, this year the program has been affected by a strike, a City spokesperson said.

In Toronto, the City notes that crews clear three-metre wide driveway openings on eligible residential streets. Crews also clear three-metre driveway openings on eligible collector and arterial roads if the snow pile is more than 25 cm.

Elsewhere in the GTA, many municipalities offer windrow clearing for seniors or individuals with disabilities. Mississauga is one that currently offers that service — for a $200 fee for the season, though applications have now closed.

Some municipalities charge a fee like Mississauga, while others, such as Whitchurch-Stouffville or Whitby, offer the service at no charge.

Oakville and Burlington, which charge a fee, placed priority on applications for seniors or individuals with disabilities, and then opened it to the wider public, with a limited number of spots available.

Newmarket, Halton Hills and Uxbridge are some of the municipalities where no windrow clearing service is offered.

A spokesperson for Brampton, meanwhile, said the city is currently seeking feedback from residents “to better understand which additional services they would like to receive in the future.”

“This could include windrow removal,”Cyrille McGregor said. 

“A survey is available for residents to complete until April 2025. This feedback will be used to inform council’s decisions on the services provided in the City’s next winter maintenance contract.”

Overall, while it varies from location to location, it appears that residents in Mississauga — and perhaps Brampton — may soon get some clean-up relief after snowstorms, joining Toronto, Richmond Hill and Vaughan.

— With files from Declan Finucane