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Janesville declares snow emergency for noon; dispatchers urge caution

The city of Janesville has declared a snow emergency starting at noon today.

A snow emergency means that all vehicles must be removed from city streets and public parking lots until snow plowing operations are complete. To ensure that you do not receive a parking ticket, move your vehicle before noon and keep it off city streets until they have been completely plowed.

If you are unable to park in a driveway or garage, vehicles can be parked in one of six downtown municipal parking lots in a designated snow emergency parking stall.

They are:

-- East Wall Street lot at East Wall Street and North Parker Drive

-- Municipal Building lot at West Wall Street and North Jackson Street

-- South High Street lot at West Court Street and South High Street

-- Senior Center lot at St. Lawrence Avenue and Water Street

-- Hedberg Public Library lot on Water Street

-- River/Union Street lot at South River Street and Union Street

Fines for parking on the streets during a snow emergency are $20. Police may begin issuing tickets to violators before plowing operations begin.

Residents can get additional snow emergency information on the city’s Web site at www.ci.janesville.wi.us or by calling (608) 755-SNOW. To report problems or concerns, call 755-3110.

County and state dispatchers urge extreme caution, especially as the day gets colder. Road salt doesn’t work at temperatures of 10 degrees or less, one state patrol dispatcher said.

All lanes are open on Interstate 90/39 after emergency workers cleared two accidents that slowed traffic near Janesville earlier this morning.

Injuries were minor, the state patrol reported.

At one point, the state patrol was responding to 14 accidents – all of them in Rock County.

“People need to remember, that just because the roads are fine near Madison, they might not be fine somewhere else,” one dispatcher said.