When Parking Lots Need Clear-and-Haul Snow Removal | Winnipeg MB

When Parking Lots Require Clear-and-Haul Snow Removal in Winnipeg

In our experience, clear-and-haul snow removal is rarely something commercial property owners plan for at the start of winter. Early on, most parking lots rely on snow piling, and for a while, that works just fine.

As winter progresses, though, the snow keeps coming.

Winnipeg averages well over a metre of snowfall each year, and that snow doesn’t arrive all at once. It comes in waves, storm after storm, often with freeze-thaw cycles in between. Over time, snow piles grow larger, harder, and more difficult to manage. This is usually when our commercial customers start asking questions about options beyond standard plowing, even if they don’t yet know the term “clear-and-haul.”

What Clear-and-Haul Snow Removal Actually Means

Clear-and-haul snow removal goes a step beyond regular parking lot plowing.

With standard snow removal, snow is pushed to designated pile areas on the property. Clear-and-haul removes that snow entirely. Snow is cleared, loaded with heavy equipment, and hauled off-site to approved snow disposal locations.

Our commercial customers often ask whether clear-and-haul is the same as snow hauling. In practice, clear-and-haul refers to the full process of restoring usable space in a parking lot by removing accumulated snow, not just moving it around the site.

Why Parking Lots Eventually Run Out of Snow Storage

In our experience, most commercial parking lots are designed with limited snow storage in mind. That’s usually fine early in the season, but problems develop as winter wears on.

Repeated snowfall causes snow piles to:

    • Take up parking stalls
    • Block visibility at entrances and exits
    • Encroach on driving lanes
    • Spill into pedestrian areas and walkways

Our commercial customers say this is often when tenant complaints start. Reduced parking, tighter access lanes, and blocked sightlines create safety and operational issues that can’t be solved by pushing snow further.

At that point, clear-and-haul becomes less of a convenience and more of a necessity.

Signs a Parking Lot Needs Clear-and-Haul Snow Removal

Our commercial customers usually contact us about clear-and-haul when they notice one or more of the following:

    • Parking stalls disappearing as snow piles grow
    • Snowbanks blocking sightlines at entrances or intersections
    • Access lanes narrowing and becoming difficult to navigate
    • Snow piling too close to sidewalks or pedestrian routes
    • Emergency calls after storms because there is nowhere left to push snow

In our experience, once these issues appear, they tend to get worse quickly if snow continues to accumulate.

Why This Is Common for Commercial Properties in Winnipeg

Winnipeg winters are long, and snowfall is cumulative. Even in an average year, snow builds up steadily over several months rather than melting away.

Freeze-thaw cycles can also harden snow piles, making them larger and more difficult to relocate later. In our experience working across Winnipeg, many commercial properties that rely solely on piling run into storage issues by mid-to-late winter.

This is especially true for properties with:

    • Tight layouts
    • High parking demand
    • Shared access areas
    • Limited space between curbs, buildings, and sidewalks

Areas We Commonly Provide Clear-and-Haul Snow Removal

We provide clear-and-haul snow removal for commercial parking lots throughout Winnipeg and surrounding areas, including:

    • Winnipeg
    • Garden City
    • River East
    • East St. Paul
    • North Kildonan
    • East Kildonan
    • West Kildonan
    • The Maples
    • Rossmere
    • Transcona

Our experience across these areas gives us a clear understanding of how snow accumulation affects commercial sites over the course of the winter.

How Clear-and-Haul Fits Into a Commercial Snow Management Plan

Clear-and-haul works best when it’s part of a planned snow management strategy, not just an emergency response.

Our commercial customers often ask whether clear-and-haul can be scheduled ahead of time. In many cases, it can. Some properties plan haul-off after a certain number of storms or once snow piles reach a specific size.

When combined with regular parking lot plowing, clear-and-haul helps keep lots functional throughout the season instead of reacting only when problems arise.

Why Many Property Managers Wait Too Long to Schedule Clear-and-Haul

In our experience, many property managers wait longer than they should to consider clear-and-haul. Early in the season, it’s easy to assume snow piles will remain manageable.

Our commercial customers often say they didn’t anticipate how quickly snow would build up, especially during winters with frequent storms. By the time access becomes an issue, options are more limited and service becomes more urgent.

Planning ahead allows clear-and-haul to be done efficiently, rather than under pressure.

When to Start the Conversation About Clear-and-Haul

In our experience, the best time to discuss clear-and-haul snow removal is before snow storage becomes a problem.

If your parking lot already feels tight, snow piles are encroaching on parking or access lanes, or visibility is becoming an issue, it’s worth having the conversation sooner rather than later. Clear-and-haul is about restoring space and maintaining safe, usable parking throughout the winter, not just after a major disruption.

Clear-and-Haul Snow Removal for Commercial Parking Lots

Clear-and-haul snow removal is designed for commercial parking lots that need more than basic plowing to stay functional during Winnipeg winters. Terrace Snow Removal works with commercial property owners and managers to assess snow storage limitations and provide clear-and-haul services when piling alone is no longer enough.

If snow storage is becoming a concern at your property, our team can help you determine whether clear-and-haul snow removal is the right next step for your parking lot.

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