Many of us tend to think of this year’s hard winter as a challenge in extremely urban areas like downtown New York City, but it also has its effects out in other more rural areas of the state. Reporting from February from local broadcast affiliate WENY shows snowfall and other factors impacting the community of Elmira, New York, just above the Pennsylvania state line and not too far from the Great Lakes area, south of Rochester and Syracuse. Some of the challenges reported in Elmira are emblematic of what happened in a lot of communities around the state. Locals reported on snow piles in parking lots impacting visibility, and large piles of snow lowering sight distances on busy streets. Signage can also be covered up, and intersections can become a lot more hazardous, in these kinds of situations. Drivers can find it harder to watch out for pedestrians or cyclists. The unprecedented obstacles that snow piles present can be dangerous.

Public Works and Public Responsibility

Elmira officials quoted in the WENY coverage talked about the challenges of keeping snow plowed and figuring out where to put it. As discussed in this article, there’s a balance between getting snow off of roadways and putting it in places where it won’t impact visibility for drivers. Then there’s the responsibility of local businesses and households to remove snow and ice from their local areas.