Dusti Muniz of Cornwall Ontario Upset at Excessive Overnight Snow Removal Noise – Feb 19, 2014

LTE UThe City of Cornwall has a bylaw, that (in short), prohibits the use of excessive noise at all times in quiet zones, and all other zones from roughly 7PM (or 9PM, and even 11PM) until 7AM.

 

The last three nights there have been constant snow removal teams working outside in my neighborhood, removing snow. While I can appreciate the work that they do – 1AM is NOT the time to be doing this. The clanking, pounding, scraping, beeping, and clashing noises are loud enough to come through the windows (while shut) and still be perfectly distinguishable in my bedroom (which is at the back of the house – whereas the work is out in the front). I work two jobs, and I rely on sleep to not only be able to efficiently operate throughout the day, but to keep my sanity.

 

I feel that these removal crews, with these front loaders, BobCats, and dump trucks (while simply just doing their jobs), are causing more residents than myself a lack of sleep and unneeded frustration. Why can’t these teams work during the day?

onpea.org

34 Comments

  1. Oh for the love of god…look dude…I’ll gladly take your snow removal noise over my crack-head neighbour who blasts her rap shit at all times of the day & night…so loud that we can hear it OVER our dishwasher and our TV on 10!….and by-law and the police do NOTHING! I think my issue trumps yours!

  2. Author

    I have neighbors from hell above me too. It’s very frustrating.

  3. Too bad Jamie and Colleen didn’t live in Florida
    They could open fire on the neighbors and claim self defense

  4. Author

    Or vice versa. Less guns here in Canada 🙂

  5. Point taken Mr Jamie
    I just wish we had some decent politicians who could help bring some jobs to our area
    the fact that Dusti has to work two jobs to make ends meet while mp guy (I Know Nothing)Lauzon seems to be hiding until he can get his Senate appointment and an even better pension plan is really sad

  6. In an ideal world they would do commercial at night and residential during the day, either snow removal or street sweeping. (There are night workers though that would have similar concerns) Although dealing with manpower and contractors with other obligations, things will often be like this as the city guidelines on noise do not matter when the city is doing the work.
    I would not suggest earplugs in case you need to hear a fire alarm, but the city should be giving advance notice of this work, demand it.

  7. Imagine having to hear those inconsiderate people clearing snow! It’s an outrage and a crime!

  8. yy know how, just leave the snow melt then they will all whine it was never plowed away when they chouldnt of complained about the noise in the first place.

  9. Someone needs to get a life if they complain about snow removal. Man, it’s a way of life here in Canada!

  10. I do have a life Stan, which includes two jobs and a need for sleep which I can’t get due to the excessive noise. You talk about a life, yet here you are trolling threads 😉

  11. Maybe the City should enact a bylaw that would limit any given snowfall to a manageable amount, like around 6cm no more than three times per week. Think of the savings! It’s a no-brainer.

  12. Furtz, something of that magnitude is beyond municipal bylaws.HAHA
    Perhaps a private company can develop a larger Zamboni to vacuum/melt the snow and drain in the sewer. It could be soundproofed and left out as a tourist attraction. Don’t you have engineering experience and some time?
    Not trying to make light of a real issue, but other cities put out notice posters in the snowbanks 24 hours ahead of snow clearing, that is probably the best to be expected in our climate.

  13. Same here,Snow removal crews in front of our place untill 5 am this morning.Just can,t figure why though,they just did one side of the street in front of the condo,s about 3/4 of the block.All though i no it has to be done could they at lease shut down there backup beepers.

  14. That’s funny Eric. About forty years ago I decided that city or town life wasn’t for me. So I live on a dead-end road in the boonies where it’s always peaceful.

  15. While I have pity for Dusti we have to be realistic about this. We have received an extraordinary amount of snow and ice this winter. And because of that it’s no longer just a day time thing. It’s being done after hours so the snow can be removed. If they did it just during the day we’d be no further ahead when it snows again. As for the back-up beepers they cannot be turned off as they are provincially legislated on trucks and equipment. As for Eric’s idea about the snowbank posters it’s a good idea, but I don’t think workable here in Cornwall.

  16. I have a one word answer to the problem. Good WEED. Maybe two words? What?

  17. COME ON PEOPLE THIS IS CANADA HEY HAVE A CANADIAN …….SPRING IS COMMMMING

  18. Not sure, but I think Hudak is promising to get rid of back-up beepers if elected. These work-place safety rules have gotten way out of control.

  19. I am pretty sure the plow would have to obstruct traffic in order to remove snowbanks during the day. This is one of the reasns it is done at night.

  20. At least at night the snow plows don’t have to worry about hitting small children walking home from school, seniors crossing the road or people walking their pets. Try ear plugs.

  21. Dusty snow removal is nothing compared to what we have endured when we first came to Ottawa and all the hamering going on on our building which had to be repaired. My daughter was working the graveyard shift doing office work nearby and she had to sleep in the daytime and couldn’t and was very sick and we didn’t know what it was until we consulted the doctor to find out with all the tests done that she has thyroid disease. I do feel for you doing two jobs but I will tell you something. Those snowplows as well as street sweepers are more beneficial working at night because during the daytime they interfere with traffic and we know this first hand here in Ottawa. I like to listen to the snowplows at night and it does help me to sleep. At least the snow is being removed for you so as you can go to work. I know I sympathize with you but the work has to be done. During the summer when you open up your windows then you will complain about the traffic.

  22. Dusty one more thing is that we have an even bigger problem than yourself and that is there is a snow dumping area not far from where we live and there is non stop traffic of trucks going by from all over dumping the snow. There are certain places here in Ottawa for that type of dumping and not far from where I live there is one and the traffic is non stop day and night in all seasons. Don’t complain Dusty and try and get the best rest that you can. The traffic in Cornwall IS NOTHING COMPARED TO WHAT WE ENDURE HERE IN OTTAWA so have a little sympathy for me too. Cornwall is like a farm compared to Ottawa and the traffic is the worst part of the city. Keep calm and sleep well. Things could be a great deal worse than that and at least the snow is being cleared away for everyone.

  23. Furtz…..Your comment as to enacting a bylaw limiting the amount of snowfall really would wreak havoc in this country. 50% could be snow but the other 50% would have to be neige. Three days per week would not work out either, both sides would require equal downfall. Although throwing snowballs/balle de neige could work under bi FLING ualism.

    John MacDonald
    Niagara Falls

  24. Do any of you remember what happened when the bus hit the train in the community of Barrhaven (aka Farrhaven) here in Ottawa and the suburb didn’t want CN to blow its whistle and the bus plowed through the barrier and hit the train and killed and wounded a number of people. I would much rather hear the whistle of the train for safety to warn of its coming and I don’t mind the sound of the snow ploughs and its beeping to warn that it is backing up or whatever. Safety first. I hear the street cleaners at night and one day we were driving on Hunt Club Road some years back and the street sweeper almost caused a big accident and that was in the daytime. Folks don’t complain about the work being done at night. I would take safety first any day. As for Hudak (who dat) this is another twit – the cousin of McGuinty. B.C. is in a rut as well because of the Liberal/Fiberal prov. gov. that they have. Either party is no good if they have a twit in charge.

  25. Oh dang! I never meant for snow, or the removal of it, to devolve into a language issue.
    What’s French for “beep-beep”?

  26. I am a Canadian from Cornwall now living in the USA. This is an interesting discussion. I have always lived in apartments since leaving home, and I have found it helps to place a small fan in your bedroom to generate white noise. Just a small desk fan will work. You experiment with placing it various distances from your bed until you have the optimum noise level to mask out the equipment. It works very well and is cheap, has always worked for me.

  27. I no now why they only did 1 side of the street the other night.They saved my side for tonight.LOL.Those dam beepers/

  28. Hugger 1, do you think snow bank signs warning of a time estimate for clean up would be stolen? Not sure why they would not be workable, here is a link to the Ottawa signs about half way down the page.
    It would be right up there with city expectations to make work…..A driver and worker go to an area to be cleaned the next day and put posters on sticks in the “offending” snow banks. A driver and worker remove them ahead of the plows and bring them to the next scheduled area.

    The idea is to warn citizens so they can make other sleeping arrangements, remove debris like shopping carts and goats if need be.

  29. Author

    Likewise Eric, instead of signs notifications could be done via the city website.

  30. Dusty you better not live on the streets where they water flowers, 3:00 a.m. or 4:00 two men with a big diesel truck stand and talk for 30 minutes talking with the truck running i guess diesel is free, when you call they tell you they have to do it early so they can turn the trucks around on the street. I put up with that for over ten years , that city will make you crazy won’t it Jamie ?

  31. Eric…the reason I say it is unworkable here in Cornwall is due to the city’s size. Cornwall is a small city. Things can move faster than anticipated or slower than anticipated. But usually in Cornwall it’s slower if construction / reconstruction of city streets is any indication.

  32. Thanks for the tip Greg. I have a fan sitting on a little table here and that is what I will do during the summer months. It was easy to sleep in Cornwall since there is such very little traffic like a farm but there in Ottawa like all big cities it is non stop day and night but just less at night. The emergency vehicles go by very frequently and they are a very big nuisance but are a necessity. We have a humoungous ski hill not far from us and at least it is not polluted like the one in Cornwall – it is all snow and ice. These hills are all over Ottawa in the city areas designated for this. Last year there was very little snow and the hill would have been a lot smaller than this year.

  33. Well i have people hiddening around my apartment dont know them,but they been screaming forten days now no e stop and stalking me to

  34. Those are just Halloween ghosts that were left behind.

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