The Clare County Road Commission is responsible for plowing over 1000 miles of public roadway and it prioritizes snow removal by traffic volume. Expressways and state highways are the first to be plowed, followed by major county roads, rural county section line roads, and finally subdivision roads. The process of opening the roads can take 3 working days after a storm ends, with widening and cleanup taking several more days to complete. During extended or closely spaced storms, snow removal equipment will concentrate on main roads, possibly delaying the snow removal on local roads and in subdivisions for several days. Financial reasons dictate that the road commission will not clear county roads on weekend overtime.
Snow removal equipment is available to help ambulances, fire trucks, and police vehicles respond to emergencies.
Plowing snow into or across public roads by private citizens is against the law. Individuals can help make winter safer for everyone by not parking in roadways, by not plowing snow into or across a roadway, and by not piling snow in a manner that obstructs the vision of motorists.
Winter snow removal also often damages mailboxes, which are allowed in the road right-of-way as a convenience to rural residents. Snow being pushed from plows has considerable force and may damage mailboxes and posts. This is unavoidable, especially with wet, heavy snow. Residents are asked to understand the situation and replace their own mailboxes. The road commission tries to open as many roads as possible, as quickly as possible, and regrets any inconvenience.
For more information about winter maintenance in Michigan, contact the Clare County Road Commission at (989)539-2151 between 7:00am and 3:30pm, M-F.