Pittsburgh brings in contractors as some side street residents say they're stuck
Cleanup on city side streets and alleys continued Tuesday. Contractors were brought in to help after dozens of city trucks went down.
As new snow came down Tuesday, cleanup for the weekend storm continued across city neighborhoods like Lawrenceville, where some streets were finally cleared Monday night or Tuesday morning.
"They didn't plow my road, Keystone, until today, so I've had to stay home," Trebor Evans said while driving through Lawrenceville.
While some alleyways were still slick, drivers could get through them if they were cautious. Others, like a stretch of Kent Way, were still buried with cars stuck under inches of snow.
"I'm not expecting them to move anytime soon. Luckily, I put a car on the main street that I was able to get out," Connor Ellis said from his front porch on McCandless Avenue.
Alleys across the city were the biggest problem areas. They are down the priority list of what is essential to clear. Livery Way in Morningside only had tire tracks going down it.
According to Mayor Corey O' Connor, more than 100 tons of snow were taken out of Garfield alone. Skid loaders and front loaders were working to fill up dump trucks that were taking out about 9 to 10 tons at a time. Contractors said they did more than 100 trips, adding up to more than 1,000 tons of snow.
Some neighbors understand that the fleet issues were going to cause challenges for the city after the massive snowstorm.
"All things considered, with the plows breaking down, and the cold, he's fighting a three-pronged battle," Michael Franklin said while clearing out a parking spot in Lawrenceville.
Others feel it's just become the way things go when it snows.
"I thought it was a little confusing how long it took to come down this road and plow it for the first time," Ellis said.
On Tuesday night, Mayor O'Connor said 50 city vehicles will be plowing and salting. More than 25 contractors will be working as well.
The sound of spinning tires on some of the streets is like a scream for help after Sunday's snowstorm.
"This has been an ongoing thing for the past two days," Jordan Ricketts of Brighton Heights said.
Ricketts and his girlfriend had to try and move their Honda SUV Tuesday morning, but it wasn't easy.
"She got stuck as I said it was gonna happen," Ricketts said.
The conditions on San Pedro Street in Brighton Heights were not good, along with other streets and intersections in neighborhoods like Morningside and Shadyside.
"This road has been untouched," Ricketts said.
Parts of the Hill District saw something similar. Most of the main roads were fine. A lot of side streets weren't. Some appeared not to have been even touched by a plow.
The only signs of movement on places like Wandless Street and Hollace Street were most likely from the cars that fought to get up and the tracks they left behind.
"We're really being patient, we're trying to be as patient as we can," said Father Paul Abernathy, the CEO of the Neighborhood Resilience Project.
But still, some people are a little frustrated, especially with 37 of the city's trucks initially out of service. Twenty-one have come back since, but still, there is frustration.
"I don't see how things weren't maintained and checked," Shawn Boylan of Brighton Heights said.
Ricketts and his girlfriend maintained perseverance, eventually getting their SUV out of the snow after getting stuck.
"A little bit of intestinal fortitude pushed her through, but we got her," Ricketts said.
It's one of those days when one can be grateful to have an SUV.
"Now she can go to work, and you know, do the things that she does," Ricketts said.