Neighborhood streets covered with snow days after storm/Home heating fire prevention INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Slush and more slush still greeted motorist Esther Waltz, who lives off of 49th Street between Keystone and College avenues, on Wednesday, more than two days after a snowstorm ended in Indianapolis. Waltz said, “It’s very disappointing actually. It almost makes you feel just forgotten. They don’t care. We still haven’t even seen any plow trucks on our streets, so we just kind of have to make our own path.” Making a path on streets with deep, inconsistent trenches can be treacherous. “Slippin’ and slidin’ all over the place, and I was really worried I was going to get stuck a couple of times,” Waltz said. For another motorists, Dahlia Darr, it was worse that just slippin’ and slidin’. Darr’s lower-riding sports car couldn’t get off their street at all. “I have not been able to make it to work. I’m not even able to make it to the store. I feel basically trapped. If they could just do one pass with the snowplow it would make a big difference.” That one pass may not happen because Darr is on a residential street. The Indianapolis Department of Public Works on Thursday was only focusing on connector streets. Darr said, “I’m really concerned about getting more snow and being trapped even longer.” Public Works has said its stable of 70 trucks are working around the clock, with crews working 12 hours on and 12 hours off to clear the 8,400 lane miles of streets. Public Works says this strategy is allowing them to plow more streets without the delay of using outside contractors, as was done in the past. Waltz said, “They need to re-evaluate that, because I don’t think that’s working. We haven’t seen anyone.” Public Works said Wednesday that it’s monitoring the snow coming Friday, which might have to reset all of their snowplowing efforts, leaving some streets in South Broad Ripple as they are Wednesday. Latest weather forecast from Storm Track 8 Previous coverage Plowing ‘ahead of schedule,’ according to Indy Public Works Indianapolis crews battle to keep city streets passable after snowstorm News release “INDIANAPOLIS – The Indianapolis Department of Public Works (Indy DPW) continues to work around the clock to remove the snow from the streets ahead of another potential round of snow this weekend.   “Streets  “With primary and secondary thoroughfares in good shape, the focus changed on Tuesday to addressing Connector streets. That plan is continuing through Wednesday.   “Established in 2020, this policy has allowed for crews to address more streets in the City without the delay often incurred through the use of outside contractors. Connectors represent 300+ centerline miles in denser residential areas.   “Contractors will not be activated to remove snow on residential streets following a close examination of current and future winter conditions, with plowing of residential streets creating an increased probability for icing, including black ice. Residents can review the City’s snow removal policy as it pertains to residential streets here. “To learn more about which Indianapolis streets are Connectors, view a copy of our Connector map. “Trails  “On Tuesday, the trail maintenance team began clearing commuter trails which connect pedestrians and bicyclists to neighborhoods and other parts of the city. They have completed the Monon Trail and began work clearing the B&O and Fall Creek trails today.  “Fleet/crews   “Indy DPW crew members are continuing to operate on rotating, 12-hour shifts. Throughout the snow fights, Indy DPW has aimed to have 70 drivers on the roads at all times.  “Since the start of the fight, Indy DPW has:  Logged 7,314 man hours  Plowed 44,992 miles, and  Used 4,542 tons of salt  “In addition to our drivers running a 24-hour operation, the Indy DPW fleet team is working around the clock to keep our vehicles in the fight in anticipation of another round of snow this weekend.  “To view roads that have been recently plowed or will be plowed, visit our Indy Snow Force webpage.  “For more information on the city’s approach to snow removal, visit Indy.gov/Snow.” Indianapolis Department of Public Works news release issued 4:52 p.m. Jan. 8, 2025