Centennial SMARTS: Know Your Snow Route Before You Need It

Colorado has a special talent for making October feel like three different seasons before lunch.

One day, the windows are open. A few days later, someone is standing in the garage asking, “Where’s the snow shovel?”

So this week’s Centennial SMART isn’t about buying more winter gear.

It’s about knowing how winter actually works in Centennial before the first real storm arrives.

A few minutes spent understanding snow routes, driveway expectations and emergency resources now can save a surprising amount of frustration later.

1. Find Out What Kind of Street You Live On

Not every Centennial street is plowed the same way.

The City divides roads into three snow-removal priorities.

Priority 1 includes major arterial streets and routes providing important access for emergency services.

Priority 2 generally includes collector streets connecting neighborhoods to major roads, schools, businesses and other important destinations.

Priority 3 includes most residential neighborhood streets.

Here is the important part: Priority 3 residential streets are not routinely plowed during every storm. They are generally addressed only during more significant winter events when authorized by the City Manager.

Take five minutes this week and look up your street on Centennial’s snow route map.

That way, when snow arrives, you already know what level of service to expect rather than wondering whether your street was forgotten.

2. Know What Happens at the End of Your Driveway

There is a particular Colorado phenomenon that deserves its own vocabulary.

It is called a windrow, the ridge of snow that can form across a driveway after a snowplow passes.

Centennial notes that residents are responsible for clearing these driveway windrows, and because plows may make several passes during a storm, the ridge can occasionally return after you have already cleared it.

That makes one simple strategy especially useful:

If possible, wait until the plow has made its primary passes before launching the full driveway excavation.

Otherwise, winter may hand you the same chore twice.

3. Don’t Put the Snow Back Where It Came From

When clearing a driveway or sidewalk, resist the understandable temptation to push everything into the street.

Centennial prohibits residents, businesses and private snow-removal services from shoveling or plowing snow from private property into public streets or gutters because it can create driving hazards, drainage problems and additional refreezing.

Instead, identify a place on your property now where shoveled snow can safely accumulate.

Tiny decision today.

Much easier job during a 20-degree morning later.

4. Bookmark the Snowplow Map

Centennial snowplows are equipped with GPS tracking, and the City provides an online map residents can use during snow operations. The City may deploy up to 20 plows depending on storm intensity.

Bookmarking that page now means you do not have to hunt for it when the weather is already messy.

Explore Centennial Snow and Ice Control

Think of it as removing one future question from your brain.

5. Check Your Emergency Alerts

Centennial’s emergency-preparedness resources direct residents to the Arapahoe County Office of Emergency Management for local emergency alerts.

If you have not reviewed your notification settings recently, take a minute this week to make sure your household can receive important local information during severe weather or another emergency.

This is particularly helpful if your household includes older adults, people with mobility needs, pets or anyone who may need extra time to respond when conditions change.

BONUS SMART:
Give the Car a Five-Minute October Check

No automotive expertise required.
-Put the ice scraper back in the vehicle.

-Check the windshield washer fluid.

-Make sure headlights and brake lights are working.

-Look at tire pressure, particularly as nighttime temperatures begin falling.

-Move gloves or a small blanket into the car.

You are not preparing for an expedition across Antarctica.

You are simply making sure the first freezing morning does not begin with a scavenger hunt.

The Centennial SMARTS Challenge

This week, spend 15 minutes preparing for a storm that has not happened yet.

Find your snow-route priority.

Bookmark the City snowplow page.

Choose where driveway snow will go.

Check emergency alerts.

Put the scraper in the car.

That is preventative maintenance for your schedule, not just your house.

Because one of the easiest ways to save time and money is to make decisions while the sky is still blue.

Save time. Save money. Live better.

That’s Centennial SMARTS.