Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg said this is the largest snow storm to hit Louisville in nearly 25 years. Winter Storm Blair hit Louisville and a majority of Kentucky on Sunday, and the Louisville Metro Snow Team has used more than 25 million pounds of salt to treat its 110 snow routes, Greenberg said.
“The city is in much better shape than it was 24 hours ago,” he said Tuesday afternoon.
Greenberg said there is still a lot of work to be done. Starting Wednesday morning, the city is expected to treat more roadways beyond the original snow routes. City officials have not yet released which city streets will be added to the list of routes.
“We're going to add streets that are not on our snow routes to help more residents have their roads plowed, to help get our JCPS kids back to school quicker, to help get you to your job, to help get you to your doctor's appointment, to help our university students get to and from their school and their place of employment even quicker,” Greenberg said.
While city snow plows and salt trucks have driven more than 9,000 miles to treat snow routes this week, Greenberg said residential areas may not be cleared.
“We don't clear every road,” Greenberg said. “Some are very small roads that don't have much traffic. I, for example, live on a city road, but it is not on the snow route.”
Greenberg said it's a homeowners responsibility to clear their sidewalks. He encouraged renters to call their landlords to get their sidewalks cleared. Residents can also call 311 if they notice any untreated snow routes.
To prevent accidents and improve visibility, Greenberg also encouraged drivers to remove the thick snow layer from their vehicles before driving.
The intense winter weather is expected to continue disrupting TARC and TARC3 paratransit services.
Many TARC routes will not be in service until further notice.
The following TARC routes are fully operable:
- #4 Fourth Street
- #10 Dixie Rapid
- #15 Market Street
- #21 Chestnut Street
- #23 Broadway
- #28 Preston Highway
TARC3 is still operating, but Greenberg said people should expect some delays due to the weather conditions.
All universities have been closed since Monday as well as JCPS and many private schools. JCPS spokesperson Carolyn Callahan said students and families should expect another snow day on Wednesday.
JCPS parents should know if schools are closed Thursday by 5 a.m. that day, Callahan said.
Callahan said the closures are for student safety. She said students may need to catch the bus from side streets, and many of them have been covered in thick, icy snow since Sunday.
“We want to make sure that [bus drivers] can safely get to those bus stops and safely transport our students,” Callahan said. “So the fact that the mayor and the city are going to continue working and add these routes is definitely a huge help to us, and we appreciate all of that support.”
Callahan encouraged JCPS families to do indoor activities around the city until schools reopen.
Many businesses will reopen on Wednesday:
- Mary T Meagher Aquatic Center: 5 a.m. - 9 p.m.
- Louisville Zoo: 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.
- Discounted admission with the donation of a canned good through Feb. 28
- Speed Art Museum: 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
- Louisville Slugger Museum: 11 a.m. - 5 p.m.
- Kentucky Science Center: 9:30 a.m. - 5 p.m.
