A shift in strategy helped North Glengarry navigate a challenging winter season marked by province-wide salt shortages, all while dramatically lowering costs and maintaining service standards. At the Committee of the Whole meeting on Wednesday, April 22, Council was informed that the municipality reduced its winter operations costs during the 2025-2026 season, cutting contracted spending to $28,721.80 compared to $82,301.63 the previous year.
“We’re about $50,000 under when you compare January, February, and March of 2026 to the same months in 2025,” Director of Public Works Timothy Wright said. “We moved approximately the same amount of snow for a lot less.”
“There is a caveat, as we didn’t have any special weather events in 2026, while we had a fairly big weather event from February 16 to 18, 2025, requiring us to bring in a lot of contractors,” Wright noted.
The savings come as the Township implemented a revised winter operations strategy focused on efficiency, more deliberate call-outs, and better use of weather data.
“This balanced approach allowed the Township to optimize service delivery without compromising road safety,” Wright said, noting staff relied more heavily on real-time conditions and forecasts to guide deployment decisions.
Despite similar overall winter conditions year-over-year, including comparable snowfall totals and temperatures below -29°C, 2025 featured more intense, concentrated storm events, while 2026 saw more evenly distributed snowfall. This allowed crews to respond in a more measured way, contributing to savings.
The Township also adapted to a province-wide salt shortage by closely managing usage and introducing a blend of salt and stone dust, particularly on lower-volume roads. Additional changes, including a shift to seasonal contracts and bringing some work in-house, are expected to support further savings in future years.
