Toronto and much of the Greater Toronto Area woke up to a city slowed to a crawl on Monday, as an overnight snowstorm turned commutes, runways and sidewalks into a slog and forced a wave of cancellations across the region.
Heavy snow through the night left main arteries slushy and side streets barely passable during the morning rush. Plows and salters were out in force, but accumulation outpaced cleanup in many neighbourhoods. Commuters reported long delays on major routes, with traffic crawling and visibility reduced at times.
Public transit was also feeling the strain. Surface routes struggled through rutted snow and slush, and riders were warned to expect longer travel times and the possibility of detours on bus and streetcar lines. Some GO Transit services were operating on modified schedules, as crews worked to clear platforms and switches.
Air travellers were not spared. At Pearson and Billy Bishop airports, the storm translated into delays and a number of cancellations, as airlines deiced planes, juggled schedules and tried to keep runways clear. Passengers were urged to check their flight status before heading out and to pack extra patience along with their carryons.
On the roads, police urged drivers to slow down and leave extra space, warning of numerous fenderbenders and vehicles in ditches as the storm moved through. Even with winter tires, stopping distances lengthened on slick surfaces, and ramp merges became a particular choke point.
Schools and childcare centres across parts of the GTA cancelled buses or closed outright, turning the day into an unexpected “snow day” for many families. For parents who still needed to get to work, that added a layer of logistical headache on top of already difficult travel.
While the most immediate concern was simply getting through the day, restoration experts warned that the aftermath of a major dump can be just as costly as the storm itself – especially if the weather pattern flips from deep freeze to thaw.
“What happens is we have a big snowfall, and then it gets warm, and then all that melts at once, or we have a big snowfall, and then it rains,” said Jim Mandeville, a senior vicepresident with First Onsite Property Restoration, in an earlier interview. “That causes by far the most amount of damage in the wintertime.”
Mandeville said people tend to fixate on frozen pipes as the main winter menace, when in reality, water has many other ways of finding its way inside once the piles start to soften.
“What they don’t worry about is things like water coming in the house because they’ve piled all their snow up against the foundation to get it off a sidewalk or a backyard,” he noted. Homeowners also forget about the catch basins on their street. “They don’t think about the leaves and the trash that are plugging up the catch basin on the street in front of their house. That could potentially result in a sewer backup for them or their neighbours.”
In the GTA, where many streets are lined with parked cars and space to pile snow is limited, it’s common to see banks pushed right up against houses and fences. That may solve the shovelling problem in the moment, but it can turn into a seepage or flooding issue when temperatures inevitably bounce above zero.
According to Mandeville, the most widespread winter losses his firm sees aren’t dramatic roof collapses or cinematic blizzards – they’re messy, disruptive water claims. “By far the most widespread is flooding as a result of that temperature fluctuation,” he said, pointing to drain backups and sump pump failures as repeat offenders after big storms.
With that in mind, the advice from restoration professionals is simple: enjoy the snow day, but use it to get ahead of the next phase of the weather rollercoaster. Clear snow away from foundations where you can, make sure downspouts are directing meltwater away from the house, and check that street drains near your property aren’t buried under slush and debris.
For those lucky enough to be heading south while the GTA shivers, Mandeville said it’s critical not to forget about the home you’re leaving behind. Many insurance policies require someone to check the interior of the property regularly when it’s vacant during the winter.
“For those people who are snowbirds, or even those taking extended vacations, it’s really important that someone is checking on that home while they’re not there,” he said, recalling one past claim where a house sat with burst pipes for weeks. By the time anyone opened the door, “the ice on the main floor was a foot thick… we had to gut the house like it had a fire in it – it ruined the whole home.”
As crews continue to clear streets and sidewalks from this latest blast, the message for GTA residents is twofold: take it slow in the short term, and think a step ahead about where all that snow is going to go when the inevitable thaw arrives. Today’s picturesque blanket can become tomorrow’s headache if it has nowhere safe to melt.
