The National Weather Service is predicting a mixture of rain and freezing rain continuing through this evening, and changing to snow overnight. The most recent models are predicting up to 10" of snow accumulating through Thursday afternoon for our area.
Unfortunately with the numerous storms the past several weeks, there is a critical shortage of road salt in the region; and like neighboring Townships, our road salt supplies are nearly depleted. We have been advised by our vendor to expect a delivery today. If not received, we will only be applying road salt to primary roadways and intersections tomorrow. We remain in constant communication with regional suppliers, but so far we have been unable to secure additional road salt.
However, our brining system is now operational, and we have crews out since yesterday pre-treating as many roadways and streets as possible.
If we experience a prolonged occurrence of sleet, freezing rain, and snow, we anticipate that Township road conditions will deteriorate without treatment. Therefore, it is essential that motorists traveling on our municipal roads use extreme caution and travel at a reduced speed once the wintry mix begins. Please consider postponing all unnecessary travel. Any precipitation from today may is expected to freeze as temperatures fall.
Medford Township officials are monitoring the snow accumulations now forecasted for Thursday and are advising residents of the following service delivery interruptions:
1) Municipal Offices will open two hours late (10:30 am)
2) Trash collection may be delayed by one day, as determined by the Trash vendor. At this time they ask that residents put containers out on their regular day, however, please do NOT put containers on the road, as it affects our ability to plow. If your collection is missed altogether, please contact the trash contractor directly: Casworth Enterprises 856-848-3505 or casworth@comcast.net.
3) The Public Works Facility/Garage/Dump will be closed Thursday for refuse drop-off, as ALL personnel will be reassigned to snowstorm related efforts.
4) The Cranberry Hall Senior Center is closed Wednesday and Thursday.
5) The Freedom Park Dog Park and Skatepark are closed Wednesday thru Friday.
The Township's snow removal policies/procedures are posted here on the Township website: www.medfordtownship.com/content/233/251/325.aspx .
Please note in these guidelines that some roads within Medford are State or County roads, and thus are the responsibilities of those agencies to plow etc. Issues on those roads should be reported to those agencies. Please be mindful that there are 150+ miles of roadway in Medford, not all roads can be immediately cleared - please allow us time to get the job done.
The Police Department will also be enforcing Township Code 129-3; which prohibits anyone from shoveling, blowing or plowing snow from private property onto sidewalks, streets and roadways, and fire hydrants of the Township.
The Township website also includes a Service Request system that provides online reporting of issues. One of the categories is snow removal issues, along with downed trees. Electrical and cable wires should be reported directly to the utility companies involved. The Submit Service Request page is available here: www.medfordtownship.com/servicerequest. There is important and helpful information/tips at the Ready Burlington County website (www.readycomm.org), and the Medford specific Ready page (hwww.readycomm.org/your-township-or-municipality/medford/) on preparing for storms, contact info for power companies in the event of need to report outages, and more...take a look.
If these back to back weather forecasts are realized, Township personnel will have a challenging job ahead. To help them, please adhere to the following:
. Park ALL vehicles off the roadway to facilitate plowing.
. Railroad ties, sprinkler heads, mailboxes, curbing, etc., by the road edge should be marked with reflective markers that are 24" to 36" in height so they can be seen by the snow plow driver. The Township is not responsible for damage if area is not properly marked.
. Take this afternoon to check and obtain essential supplies. If you don't have to go out later this evening, please stay off the roads and let the plow trucks do their job.
. After the snowstorm passes, please remember to clear your sidewalks for those on foot.
The Township administration & staff thank you for your patience and understanding and appreciate your cooperation.
