City of Mississauga to use less road salt and limit parking on streets this winter

From cutting back on road salt to allowing fewer parked cars on the street during snow plowing, the City of Mississauga aims to keep snow clearing more efficient, effective and environmentally friendly.

Mississauga City Council has approved changes to winter road maintenance. This winter, the City will begin a Low Road Salt Strategy and expand winter parking restrictions to include 15-hour parking areas. Together, these actions help improve safety for the public and City crews.

Reducing road salt to protect the environment

Starting this winter, the City’s Low Road Salt Strategy will reduce winter salt use.

The City already has a Salt Management Plan that includes pre-treating roads with brine, plowing more often, using advanced weather watch technology and using treated salt on colder days.

The new Low Road Salt Strategy will build on the City’s Salt Management Plan and further reduce the City’s salt use by:

• Using more anti-icing brine—salt water—on 20 per cent more roads. This saves up to 650 tonnes of salt each winter.
• Plowing snow earlier on select major roads so less salt is needed. This saves up to 3,450 tonnes of salt each winter.
• Testing magnesium-treated road salt on select sidewalks and bus stops. This works well on surfaces for longer and may lessen the need to reapply salt.
• In the spring of 2027, testing the use of Halophytes. These are salt-tolerant plants that can take salt out of soils.

Fewer parked cars, easier snow clearing

The City declares a citywide winter parking restriction when it needs to plow snow. In 2025, the City put in place citywide winter parking restrictions. During the restriction, the five-hour on-street parking limit is suspended and drivers can’t park on the street.

Changes approved by Council will now include 15-hour parking areas when a citywide winter parking restriction is called.

Mississauga has four to eight snowstorms a year that require plowing. Roads are plowed when five centimetres of snow has fallen. Parked cars make it harder to clear the width of the street. This causes delays and increases costs.

With fewer parked cars, crews can:

• Clear roads safely and efficiently.
• Reduce repeat visits to streets with parked cars on the road.
• Maintain suitable service levels for residents.

Read more about the City’s snow clearing.

Quote

“Mississauga’s award-winning winter maintenance program continues to evolve to better serve residents while keeping roads and sidewalks safer and more accessible. Using less road salt helps protect our waterways, vegetation and infrastructure, while still maintaining safe winter conditions. A plow-first approach, reduced salt use and fewer parked cars during snow events will help crews clear roads more efficiently and limit environmental impacts. We’ll continue to assess our processes, test new approaches and improve our service over time.” —Helen Noehammer, Director of Works Operations and Maintenance

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Tags

• Roads and Traffic
• Service Updates and Changes
• Snow Removal and Maintenance
• Transportation