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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowAfter a lack of neighborhood road plowing during a January snowstorm led to an outpouring of complaints from Indianapolis residents, officials are implementing to a new policy.
The Indianapolis Department of Public Works will call in outside contractors to plow residential streets when snowfall has accumulated to more than 4 inches, Mayor Joe Hogsett and Council President Vop Osili announced in a joint statement Thursday. The policy change came just before an Indianapolis City-County Council Public Works Committee meeting in which a similar plowing proposal was set to be heard.
A Jan. 5-6 snowstorm dumped more than 8 inches of snow on the Indianapolis metropolitan area, and additional snowfall that week brought the total to more than a foot. Under the city’s previous rule, adopted in 2020, main thoroughfares and connector streets—dense residential roads connecting to those thoroughfares—were plowed. Many residential streets remained snow-covered as temperatures remained frigid.
In the weeks after the storm, City-County Council members grilled DPW staffers about the city’s response, calling for a return to a pre-2020 policy that required the city to call in contractors to help plow neighborhoods after more than 6 inches of snow fell. Hogsett told IBJ on Jan. 22 that he had met that afternoon with members of the council and the city was “making adjustments” to its policies.
In the joint statement, Hogsett and Osili noted that there will be “continued collaboration” on a “reformed snow operational and funding plan,” to be introduced during the 2026 budget process. The mayor typically introduces a proposed city budget plan in August.
Kyle Bloyd, spokesman for DPW, told IBJ that the policy announced Thursday, which is effective immediately, maintains the same continuous monitoring, salting and plowing for major thoroughfares as the previous plan.
Thursday’s policy announcement jumped ahead of a proposal pending before the council. That proposal, which offers similar guidance as the newly announced policy, would have required that DPW wait 60 days after approval to use it. Natalie Van Dongen, deputy director of policy and planning for DPW, said department leaders wanted to get ahead of other potential snowstorms and wanted to be transparent about its response to any snow in the near future.
Proposal No. 69, by Democratic west-side Councilor Jared Evans, would have also set the 4-inch requirement for neighborhood roads. The main difference between Evans’ proposal and the immediate change is a provision in the proposal requiring DPW to establish a set network of bike infrastructure where snow removal would be prioritized. That network would also be visible on the Indy Snow Force tracker.
Sara Hindi, chief communications officer for the council, said the proposal will be postponed for further discussion between councilors and leaders within the Hogsett administration.
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Glad they’re doing something! Their response to our January snow was a complete fail.
Just like Hogsett – a complete fail. Worst mayor in the history of our city.
According to the city’s ordinance, “…property owners are required to clear a five-foot-wide path along all sidewalks. Importantly, when shoveling, snow should not be placed onto public roadways or block alleys; instead, it should be deposited in yards or medians. Failure to comply with these regulations can result in fines of up to $50” . How about another reform… DON’T plow snow onto the sidewalks AFTER we shovel them off so people can walk on them. It happens every time there is a significant snowfall and then it’s almost impossible to clean again due to a mountain of slush or ice. People are then forced to walk in the street. We should individually be permitted to fine the city $50 every time this happens.
Prioritizing (unused) bike lanes in a snowstorm – go figure
People use bike lanes and trails all the time. Not everyone has a car. Maybe leave your subdivision and go downtown to the Old Spaghetti Factory and you’ll see people riding bikes.
For years now, our neighborhood association has paid for our neighborhood streets to be plowed. I have lived in my neighborhood for 29 1/2 years, and DPW has never once plowed the streets within our neighborhood. We hired plowing for the January snowstorm, and our streets were good to go. The streets in the neighborhoods next to us were nearly impassable.
The city of Indianapolis and DPW should be responsible for plowing the neighborhood streets as well as the main thoroughfares. By virtue of the taxes we pay, we the people own the streets, and the city and DPW work for us. Get his policy in place immediately. Our neighbors should not have to spend additional dollars out of pocket over and above our tax levies to plow the neighborhood streets that are already the municipal responsibility. GET THIS DONE!
they didn’t even do a good job on the main roads. there is no way they will plow all the side streets.
The horse is out. Now we close the barn door. What about the potholes?