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Streets Division
What We Do
The Public Works Streets Division strives to maintain the city's streets and rights-of-way for the safety and security of the public. Problems are only handled by Public Works if they are in the street or the City's right-of-way, defined as the area from sidewalk to sidewalk. Other problems are the responsibility of the property owner. If you have questions please feel free to contact the Public Works Work Center at 607-737-5750 or send an email.
The Department of Public Works works as quickly as possible during inclement weather to assure the safety and clearance of all city streets for the use of emergency vehicles and citizens.
Timeline of Salting / Plowing During a Storm
- For a light storm, we start out fighting the storm with just salt. We have 7 trucks to do the sanding.
- As the storm increases to plowable snow, we try to maintain two trucks per section, which includes mechanics and supervisors.
- In order to let our staff (who cover 140 miles of road) get adequate rest, we try to be home during the hours of 10 pm to 3 am.
- Alleys are still important to the City, but sometimes are done later on or the day after storms (Approximately 100 alleys are done by 2 one-ton trucks).
- Alleys and side streets are not always salted with each storm. It depends on the type of storm and the conditions of the roads
- Pushbacks due to odd/even parking or vehicles that move after a plow goes by will be done the following day.
- There are no winter shifts anymore, only 7 am to 3:30 pm.
- Plowing is difficult and vehicles parked on the road make it even more difficult. Parking in driveways is appreciated.
View the City Snow Removal Map (PDF).
Each year the City of Elmira inspects the city streets to keep them up to the standards set by New York State. The goal of the citywide pavement program is to meet or exceed New York State goals. We also strive to stabilize pavement conditions as measured by the percentages of pavement in poor and fair condition and by the average surface condition rating at no worse than the 1986 statewide levels. We maintain higher volume roads to an overall higher condition level than lower volume roads. If you notice a pothole on your street or any street in the City of Elmira, please call or email the Work Center. The Department of Public Works will send out a crew to patch the pothole. Depending on the season, the pothole is patched with either temporary filling or permanent filling. If the pothole is patched temporarily, DPW will permanently patch the area when weather permits.
City-wide hot patching is done in conjunction with the City Section map. No section ranks over another, but we try to assess the worst areas first and highly traveled roads.
In recent years, a new piece of equipment "Pothole Killer", which is owned by the County but used county-wide through Shared Services is being utilized. It only takes one employee to operate.
Public Works Streets Division is responsible for the Dial-A-Truck and Furniture and Appliance Pickup Programs. For more information about these programs please call 607-737-5750.
Streetwork Submission Site
The City also provides a Streetwork Submission Site to contractors. This web page notifies the media, emergency services, and Public Works of pending street closures or work that otherwise impedes traffic. It does not provide permission to close the street. Contractors wishing to close a City street for any period of time must obtain permission from the Traffic Coordinating Board. For access to the site, please contact the Engineering Division.
Leaf Pickup
Each fall the City will collect leaves in bulk at the curb. Residents may rake their leaves to the curb (but not into the street) for pickup by City crews. The bulk pick-up program typically runs from late October to early December. Due to changes in State law, the City can no longer pick up bagged leaves at the curb for disposal at the landfill. For excessive yard waste, consider using the Dial-A-Truck program (register and pay at the City Clerk's Office), or our compost site, located at the City Yards. We also recommend mulching the leaves, studies have shown that it is beneficial to the lawn.
Christmas tree pickup is available for residents paying the sanitation fee. Beginning on December 26th, place your Christmas tree between the curb and the walk and Crews will pick up your tree.
Christmas trees are chipped and mulch is available for citizens in the Spring. Please call the Work Center at 607-737-5750 if you are interested in obtaining mulch for your landscaping.
We sweep the entire city a minimum of two times from April to October. Two sweepers do the entire city's 140 miles of road times two times (280 because we're doing each side of the road), occasionally having to sweep curb lines two to three times depending on the amount of debris. This year we brought in 6-7 street sweepers from surrounding municipalities (shared services) for two full work weeks to get a jump on it and plan on doing this in future years ahead. The cleaner you keep our yards and sidewalks the easier it is for street sweepers to work.
The City also provides a Streetwork Submission Site to contractors. This web page notifies the media, emergency services, and Public Works of pending street closures or work that otherwise impedes traffic. It does not provide permission to close the street. Contractors wishing to close a City street for any period of time must obtain permission from the Traffic Coordinating Board. For access to the site, please contact the Engineering Division.
Each fall the City will collect leaves in bulk at the curb. Residents may rake their leaves to the curb (but not into the street) for pickup by City crews. The bulk pick-up program typically runs from late October to early December. Due to changes in State law, the City can no longer pick up bagged leaves at the curb for disposal at the landfill. For excessive yard waste, consider using our compost site, located at the City Yards. We also recommend mulching the leaves, studies have shown that it is beneficial to the lawn.
Christmas tree pickup is available for residents paying the sanitation fee. Beginning on December 26th, place your Christmas tree between the curb and the walk and Crews will pick up your tree.
Christmas trees are chipped and mulch is available for citizens in the Spring. Please call the Work Center at 607-737-5750 if you are interested in obtaining mulch for your landscaping.