Heavy snow blankets Metro Vancouver, Fraser Valley; road conditions dicey in many parts

Though extreme cold temperatures have eased slightly, heavy snow covered the Lower Mainland region late Wednesday into Thursday, leaving many local roads in rough shape.

CityNews weather specialists and warnings from Environment Canada had said up to 15 centimetres were expected, though no official measurements have come in yet. Many people have reported accumulations even larger since flurries stopped.

The snow created plenty of headaches on local roadways, with many routes looking like they hadn’t been touched by city crews early on.

A snow-covered Broadway in #Vancouver. Road felt like it hadn’t been touched by crews yet (taken just before 5 am, safely parked with hazards on) #1130traffic pic.twitter.com/gjR3O311Sc

— Hana Mae Nassar (@HanaMaeNassar) December 30, 2021

The snow also created dangerous conditions in some areas. Late Wednesday, a child in Surrey had to be taken to the hospital after a crash along 176 Street near 92 Avenue.

The child was hurt when a station wagon was travelling south and lost control, eventually being hit by another vehicle.

Problems piled up early Thursday all across the region.

“I’m doing 60 kilometres an hour in a 90 kilometre zone and there’s still people passing me. I think it’s pretty ridiculous. I’m driving a Ford F-150 in 4WD and I’m heavily equipped but people are still driving too, too fast for the conditions,” said Brad, who called our newsroom from the North Shore just before 5 a.m.

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“Boundary Road just coming off of Highway 1, people trying to go up the hill can’t and some vehicles are going the wrong way just so they can get back down the hill,” added Will of conditions near Lynn Valley.

He says farther south, into Vancouver and Burnaby, some cars even appeared to be abandoned by drivers.

“People can’t get through, cars are just stopped,” he added. “There’s a Tesla trying to get through, oh boy. The summer-tire club.”

It’s a “Snow Day” pic.twitter.com/xgUBSXRaUS

— Ken Liberty (@liberty2855) December 30, 2021

Mike also called our newsroom to describe conditions he had encountered while driving in the Fraser Valley. He says despite the state of the roads, people continued to drive fast.

“You’re literally following the track of whoever was first out this morning and now I’m doing 37 kilometres an hour. It’s single lane and you’re only as fast as the slowest car in front of you,” he said while driving along Highway 7 near Maple Ridge.

He’s frustrated that more wasn’t done to address snow on the roads, with ample warning this weather system was coming.

Drivers have been sharing their safety tips for those who absolutely need to be out on the roads amid this snowfall — the main one being “take it slow.”

“If you do not have winter tires, stay home,” urged George. “If you don’t need to drive, for God’s sakes don’t be out here. It is not fun, it’s not pretty, and it’s very dangerous.”

If you don't need to go out, don't! There is at least 5-10 cm of snow on the roads at Cambie St and Broadway. This truck driver is putting the chains on, and everyone on foot is trudging through shin-deep powder. Also, there seems to be little plowing going on. @CityNewsVAN pic.twitter.com/bOHBCllfjA

— Kareem Gouda (@KareemsGouda) December 30, 2021

Meanwhile, commuters who are thinking of taking the SkyTrain instead of their cars are being told to give themselves extra time, with TransLink saying both the Millennium and Expo Lines are “operating slower than normal due to inclement weather.”

There have also been a number of bus cancellations and delays as a result of the snow.

Darren Ell with Mainroad crews are working to get roads cleared. However, he notes there was a lot of snow that fell in a short period of time Wednesday night.

“Talking to the nightshift crews, they were looking really good until about 3, 4 o’clock in the morning and then the big, heavy snowfall happened,” he explained. “So we had a lot of snowfall in a short period of time, just a couple of hours, and now we just got to get out there, clean it up, ,get it onto the shoulders, and clean the roads.”

Road & Bridge Crews are working tirelessly around the clock to perform snow removal, winter maintenance and to apply materials as conditions warrant.

Crews will continue that effort today to clear roads & widen shoulders.

Check @DriveBC Slow down, drive to conditions. pic.twitter.com/eGdYOxndj0

— Mainroad Lower Mainland Contracting (@MainroadLM) December 30, 2021

Ell notes if you’re uncomfortable driving in the snow, then don’t.

He says even delaying your commute can help, as it will give crews time to clear roads.

Despite what some people may think, Ell says his teams did pretreat roads with salt and brine before the snowfall.

But crews just aren’t always able to keep up.

“When there’s a lot of snow coming down, the truck passes through and within a few minutes — 10 or 15 minutes — that snow is building up again. So it takes time to get that out, and we can’t have a truck following another truck at all times. You just don’t have that many resources,” he said.

“It looks like a truck had never gone through. So you hear lots of criticism that trucks aren’t out there. They are out there, they are doing the work, it’s just that buildup keeps coming and coming. It’s relentless.”

You’re reminded to stay behind plow trucks and not pass them on the right.

Thursday’s round of snow isn’t the last for the Lower Mainland in the short-term. While conditions are expected to ease later in the day, there’s also a chance of flurries on Saturday.

Share your snow photos with us! Tag us on Twitter @CityNewsVAN, send them to us through Facebook or Instagram, or email us at news1130web@rci.rogers.com.

Please make sure you are staying safe if you do plan to snap a picture, and never do so while driving.