B.C. hit with heavy snowfall over the weekend

Although the snowy weather warning is gone for much of the province, parts of B.C., including Metro Vancouver, look like a winter wonderland to close out the weekend.

The Lower Mainland was hit with an average of 10-15 centimetres of snow starting Saturday afternoon.

As a result, TransLink had to react quickly in order to keep transit running at a smooth pace. As of Sunday morning, TransLink had already activated its snow plan for severe weather, keeping extra staff working in order to combat all kinds of weather-related delays. While bus service in the Lower Mainland has often been delayed by snowfall, a statement from TransLink says there is service on every bus route for now.

“TransLink is in constant communication with municipalities recommending which roads most need salting and plowing. Snow shuttle buses with tire socks are in place for customers on Burnaby Mountain, steep areas on the North Shore, and at UBC. Our best advice is for customers to check their specific route before leaving home,” the statement reads.

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TransLink says its SeaBus and SkyTrain services are in fairly good shape after the snow, with the only real change on that front being the addition of SkyTrain attendants on-hand for deicing work.

Meanwhile, the City of Vancouver says its plowing crews remain in full force. Amy Sidwell, manager of street operations, says this weekend’s snow was more manageable than previous ones.

“The main difference that we saw with this event is that we had a lot of assistance with the temperatures warming up overnight. So that really helps with the snow melting, and helps kind of activate the salts.”

At Vancouver International Airport (YVR) things are returning to normal following cancellations over the weekend. YVR says it’s operating at 88 per cent after cancelling and delaying over 15 per cent of its scheduled flights.

YVR by the numbers as of this morning

Currently operating 88% of originally scheduled flights for today.
Over the storm period, Saturday/Sunday there have been 201 flight cancellations out of 1088.

We will update info here and on our website https://t.co/pk0JCqHaJI

— YVR (@yvrairport) February 26, 2023

Environment Canada’s special weather statement has ended for Metro Vancouver, but a snowfall warning remains in place for the Fraser Valley closer to Hope. The weather service’s meteorologist Bobby Sekhon says Saturday’s snow was lighter compared to last year’s Dec storm. Sekhon says places along the coastline didn’t see as much snow but other places saw a bigger dump.

“Places like West Vancouver that saw lower amounts on the Dec 20 event actually saw higher amounts this time around,” Sekhon said.

He says the amount of snowfall varied depending on elevation and proximity to the coastline. Sekhon warns the following days will have a cycle of above-freezing daytime temperatures and below freezing nighttime temperatures. This cycle, he says, could cause slippery conditions.

Environment Canada says Squamish was hit the hardest in the area, seeing between 40 and 49 centimetres of snowfall.

The Coquihalla Highway between Hope and Merritt is under alert as well.

with files from Michael Williams and Victoria Mann