Calgary Transit is hoping a switch to all-weather tires will create more traction among commuters looking for a lift, particularly in the winter.

That’s one of the big changes announced at the City of Calgary’s annual winter roads media event, held Nov. 12 at their Spiller Road SE facility.

Work has begun on replacing more than 5,000 tires on 40- and 60-foot buses from all-season tires to Three-Peak Mountain Snowflake-rated all-weather tires. It’s expected that the work will be completed by 2029.

“We expect that these tires will help keep buses and customers moving during most winter driving conditions,” said Dennis Uvbiama, manager of Calgary Transit service vehicles.

“Most commercial vehicles do rely on weight to get around; we think this is an improvement over what we have today for our all-season tires.”

Uvbiama said that all-season tires are generally best suited for dry pavement. These new tires have more and different tread to help them move during the winter months.

“So, when you have icy conditions, you have deeper treads that allow the tire to better hold on to the pavement,” he said.

Calgary Transit will be doing a head-to-head test of the tires against the previous all-season tires. They’ll be testing for things like driver handling, fuel efficiency, wear, and ultimately whether it’s helped reduce lost time in delays due to a lack of traction.

“Our feedback so far from other agencies, as well as the tire manufacturer, is that these tires are expected to perform as well as our all-season tires,” Uvbiama said.

“We are also getting at the same price as our all-season tires, so we are expecting that this will be a cost-effective approach to improve traction on our winter driving for Calgary Transit.”

So far, Calgary Transit has received more than 1,000 tires for outfitting on the fleet.

They did evaluate going with winter tires and doing seasonal swaps – like many consumers do – but Uvbiama said that the logistics to get that done each year, while tracking the wear rate on each set of tires, would have been challenging.

Also, winter tires are softer rubber, which, on dry pavement, leads to greater wear. This is the same conclusion that was drawn when LWC examined the issue in 2018.

Snow clearing for all modes: Hewitt

Chris Hewitt, manager of mobility maintenance with the City of Calgary, said that while Calgarians have enjoyed a nice summer and a mild autumn, the snow is expected to start flying within a couple of weeks.

Vehicles are being prepped, and 24/7 shifts are in place to tackle whatever winter weather comes, Hewitt said.

“We’ve recently adopted our new winter maintenance policy, and what that looks at, what we’re focused on there is really making an equal effort for all modes of transport,” he said.  

“So, whether you’re walking, whether you’re wheeling, whether you’re driving, our policy really makes a focus on all different modes of travel.”

While Hewitt said in recent years they’ve noticed a later onset of winter, there have been more intense snows throughout the winter months.

The City of Calgary’s annual snow-clearing budget is $56.7 million, and thus far $31.6 million has been spent. That leaves around $25 million to deal with snow events between now and the end of 2025, Hewitt said.

“If we have what would be a normal November and December, we do anticipate coming in under budget this year on our winter maintenance program and being able to contribute some of that money back to our winter maintenance reserve,” he said.

To tackle the snow around the city, there are 30 graders, more than 100 traditional snowplows, 10 loaders, nine large snow blowers and a fleet of 50 pieces of small equipment, according to Hewitt.

Hewitt also said it’s now a good time to remind drivers to prepare for the upcoming winter driving.

“We always like to take this opportunity to let people know that maybe Calgarians should start to prepare for that winter weather and that snow,” he said.

“This can look like winterizing vehicles, snow tires, brushes, shovels, emergency kits, just to make sure that people are safe out there during the winter weather.”