I 'Heart' the Bedford DPW Sidewalk Plow Crews

DPW pulls out the “Big Guns” to clear the sidewalks on The Great Road in front of the Police Station as the sun starts to set on Valentine’s Day – Image (c) Jeff ‘JHo’ Hoyland, 2017 all rights reserved – Click to view larger image

By Jeff ‘JHo’ Hoyland

After a week of plowing nearly two feet of snow off the town roads, Bedford’s Department of Public Works began to clear the sidewalks. Valentine’s Day was devoted to clearing the sidewalks on The Great Road, particularly in the business districts.

At 3 pm on Valentine’s Day, the sidewalk on the Bedford Common was still only for those pedestrians with high boots or snowshoes. By 4:00 PM the DPW had carved a canyon clear down to the bricks

Sidewalk on the south side of The Great Road still looking for Valentine’s Day love.

The North side of The Great Roadoad had been cleared in the early part of the day.

Walkways on the north side of The Great Road were finished by 3 pm. Although, the snow was mostly “fluffy” on residential driveways, the combination of road salt, warming temperatures, and four lanes of traffic, created piles of snow that were too high for the standard snow-blower and required a larger snow plow specifically designed to clear sidewalks.

Residential main roads like Brooksbie Road, Page Road, Old Billerica Road, and Burlington Road had not been touched, except for the occasional good-hearted resident who cleared the sidewalk in front of their property. Pedestrians who wished to traverse these roads were required to trudge through with high boots, or snowshoes. The other option was to walk on the roadway.

Pedestrians who wished to traverse these roads were required to trudge through with high boots, or snowshoes; the other option was to walk on the roadway.

With the potential for increased foot traffic during February vacation beginning on Monday, residents can help the DPW — and pedestrians — by pulling out their snow-blowers or old-fashioned shovels to clear the sidewalks.