First off, a big thank you to all our Merrillville residents for your patience and understanding during this major snow event! And a big thank you to our street department workers how spent many hours yesterday starting at 2:30 a.m. to open our roads throughout town.
Here’s a quick look at how our snow removal process works — and what to expect next:
Step 1: Make Roads Passable
During the first wave of a storm, our main goal is to make every street passable — not perfectly clean. With 188 miles of roadway in Merrillville, our crews work around the clock to open travel lanes so emergency vehicles and residents can get through safely.
Step 2: Curb-to-Curb Cleanup
Once the snow slows down, we return to do a full “curb-to-curb” cleanup. That means pushing snow back as far as possible and clearing intersections and cul-de-sacs. This second pass also helps open driveways that may have been blocked during the initial plowing.
Major Problem: Cars in the Street
Cars parked in the street hinder our efforts to clear the snow. We understand that driveway space may be limited, but cars can be moved to another area, in a neighbors driveway perhaps, or squeezed together on your drive. If the plow has to go around, it missed a lot of the roadway to swing around the parked car(s).
Coming Up Next
Our crews are out today addressing bad areas and will be back out tomorrow and in the coming days to finish the job and clean up the streets even more. Please be patient as we work through all neighborhoods.
We truly appreciate your cooperation and understanding — snow removal is a big job, but together, we’ll get Merrillville moving again!
Stay safe and warm, and Happy Veteran’s Day to all of our Vets out there. Thank you for your service!
Rick Bella, Town Council President – Town of Merrillville
