Fairbanks officials found themselves backpedaling this week after the city announced it would halt snowplowing operations because temperatures had dropped to levels that longtime residents consider routine winter weather.
In a notice posted by the City of Fairbanks, Public Works said it was suspending snow removal because of “extreme cold temperatures of -30°F and colder,” stating that crews could not “safely operate snow removal equipment” and that equipment becomes unreliable at those temperatures. The city said operations would resume once temperatures rose to “safe operating levels.”
The announcement quickly raised eyebrows in a community known nationwide for enduring prolonged stretches of subzero weather. Temperatures at or below -30 degrees are not uncommon in Fairbanks winters, and residents noted that snowplowing has historically continued during similar conditions for decades. No one remembers snowplowing being suspended due to cold.
Later the same day – roughly nine hours after the initial notice – the city issued a lengthy follow-up statement emphasizing that Public Works “works diligently to keep our roads clear and safe” and that snow removal schedules are “highly dependent on weather conditions.” The second message outlined the city’s prioritization of main roads and emergency routes, explained neighborhood rotation schedules, and reminded residents of their legal obligations under city code.
That reminder included instructions for property owners to clear sidewalks, taper driveway drop-offs after plowing, and ensure that snow from private property does not obstruct streets, alleys, sidewalks, or fire hydrants. Residents were advised that failure to manage these conditions could damage vehicles and that driveway maintenance remains the responsibility of the property owner.
The contrast between the two notices did not go unnoticed. While the city initially cited safety concerns that prevented municipal crews from operating heavy equipment at -30 degrees, residents were later instructed to go outside and shovel, taper hard pack, and manage snow conditions themselves—despite the same temperatures.
Mayor Mindy O’Neall, a New Democrat, has defended the city’s approach as a safety-first decision. But critics say the episode reflects a disconnect between city leadership and the lived reality of Fairbanks winters, where extreme cold is a fact of life rather than an operational anomaly.
For many longtime residents, the issue is not simply one delayed plowing cycle, but the precedent it sets in a city where winter defines daily life for months at a time. Fairbanks has long prided itself on resilience in conditions that would shut down most of the Lower 48. This week’s messaging left some questioning whether that reputation still applies at City Hall.
5 thoughts on “Fairbanks city government says it’s too cold to plow snow?”
Didn’t leftists take over govt in Fairbanks?
Yet another example of how Alaska’s reputation has wimped out, in full alignment with the Lower 48. I once thought that plucky Fairbanks would be the bastion of our pioneer values. Imagine, “Think Green” has become the norm, rather than, “We don’t care HOW they do it Outside.” Yet it is the Greenies who fear global warming, so when they get the winter bite, instead of rejoicing, they want to curl up into a ball and suck their thumbs.
Seems Alaska has been taken over by lower 48 ‘immigrants’ who do not want to embrace living in Alaska but want to change it to be more like where they came from. They don’t adapt, don’t learn how to winter drive, act like every weather pattern is a dramatic event (the now over the top dramatic weather reporting), and every vestige of frozen anything must be removed from the roads at huge cost to taxpayers and personal property (excessive use of highly corrosive salt and sand). The list goes on. Recently also — ‘Oh my! Cancel everything as the Matsu valley is going to be windy!’ Well you can’t change the weather to be like California, Oregon and Washington so I suppose just do as Bob Bird observes above, curl up in a ball and suck your thumb. This is the first time I have ever heard of halting winter maintenance for -30ish weather.
Exactly
My thought too was they hired too many liberal outsiders still not used to Arctic climate
They going to have to find a way to clear the streets of not for the residents But for their Emergency vehicles
I was raised in Fairbanks and I never heard -30F considered ‘extreme.’ That term wasn’t associated with temperature until Fahrenheit collides with Centigrade and, even then, only if the duration is long and the daily HIGH temp is at that junction. I also would observe that my brother and I went Trick or Treating around that -30F temp. A point at which the only viable costume was a large pillow case with holes cut out so we could see. It seems now that anything below zero is too cold for the little hobgoblins. Or they open up large facilities for them to collect their candy in +65F air.
Yeah, what a bunch of wimps!