20" of snow predicted for 1/23/16

[dssjh]

the two big storms i recall during my time living in Jackson Heights -- '96 and '06 (i think it was '06) were like this. snow falling too fast is harder to plow, i think. i live facing 35th avenue and didn't see any last night either.

[edited to note]:
Addressing the press just now, the mayor said he'd been driven around the city and saw that "much work" still needed to be done in Queens, specifically mentioning Woodside, Jackson Heights and East Elmhurst. he said equipment is being moved from Manhattan into Queens this morning.

First time ever that I know of the plows not continuously riding around, and we certainly have paid the price.

[toddg]

According to the National Weather Service (via Katie Honan at DNAinfo), Jackson Heights got 34 inches of snow, the highest reported total in the region.   It doesn't look like that much to my untrained eye, but it sure is a lot of snow!

[Superclam]

According to the National Weather Service (via Katie Honan at DNAinfo), Jackson Heights got 34 inches of snow, the highest reported total in the region.   It doesn't look like that much to my untrained eye, but it sure is a lot of snow!

Anyone else feel strangely proud?

[itsit]

 Yes, seems like a huge amount but was proud to see JH up and running yesterday on our commercial streets 37th, Northern and
Roosevelt. CBS news is profiling us as having been among the neglected areas regarding snow removal. Plows were here later in
the day but it seemed to take awhile. Saw some residents who appeared to clear their streets by hand around 75th-76th sts.

[Shelby2]

There's an article in today's Times about snow not being cleared from Queens streets.  The lead photo is of a street in JH. 

Praise for de Blasio and Cuomo, but Complaints in Queens After Blizzard

The current administration directed scores of additional plow trucks, front-end loaders and V-shaped plows to help clear those smaller Queens byways where the sanitation commissioner, Kathryn Garcia, said roughly 70 plows became stuck during the storm. On one street in Jackson Heights, a plow-equipped garbage truck sat at a nearly 45-degree angle across the roadway for much of Sunday, as a weary sanitation worker worked to shovel it out.

“It’s an incredible amount of snow to have to move,” Ms. Garcia said. “Even some of the V-plows are struggling with these depths.”

After the snow is cleared from the streets, she added, the department would do an assessment to determine why its trucks seemed to have more issues in parts of Queens than elsewhere in the city, which saw smaller pockets of snow-choked streets. “We need to go back and see what we could have done better,” she said.

Still, on Sunday, some Queens residents and officials fumed, posting pictures to social media of uncleared streets. The city’s public advocate, Letitia James, called for a delayed opening for schools.

“Our roads are not clear,” Councilman Eric Ulrich, a Republican whose district includes south Queens, said in a phone interview on Sunday night. “How the mayor expects anyone to get to school or work is beyond me.”

“We’re very unhappy,” said Councilman Rory Lancman, a Democrat from eastern Queens. “Most of the streets hadn’t been touched in a long time.”

[queenskid2]

Not sure if this belongs here or on the other threads dealing with streets and plows, but for what it's worth, I think our local council members deserve some of the blame.  They're great at grandstanding on all of their favorite issues, but the bottom line is job number one for council members is making sure that the city delivers basic services to the communities that elect them.  That wasn't done here.

[Ed]

When I went out grocery shopping yesterday and then on my way to the train this morning, there were a number of side streets that were blocked by cars that were stuck, since their owners decided that the driving ban didn't apply to them. There's no way a snow plow is going to be able to get through that street.

[toddg]

I agree with Ed.   I went out for a walk late afternoon Saturday, after the driving ban had gone into effect (and several hours after it had been announced).   There were a surprising number of cars roaming the streets.   I saw several get stuck.   Several were still there the next day (including a delivery truck blocking 78th Street next to my building).  I think the city did a reasonably efficient job clearing the streets with this storm -- faster than some of the storms a couple of years ago.   But it's not the city's fault if the plows can't get through.   Today, hopefully DSNY's new corps of shovellers can make progress clearing intersections and bus stops for pedestrians.   

The entitled outrage at imperfect streets and sidewalks really strikes me as misplaced.  Selfish drivers who ignored the driving ban made the city's job a lot more difficult.  Instead of complaining, grab a shovel -- or at least take a moment to thank the hard-working folks who are out trying to clear things up.

[Shelby2]

NY Times article:
New Snow-Plowing Strategy Left Behind ‘Mixed Bag’ in Queens