City Public Service Department crews today – aided by temperatures near or above freezing for just the second time in a week – turned the winter tide.

“We made so much more progress today that we did the rest of the week,” Public Service Director Chad Weth said. “We got up roads that we’ve not been able to reach all week.

“The warmer temperature certainly was the determining factor, but also, our crews have spread about 3,000 tons of salt all week. The salt is less effective in lower temperatures, but when it gets just a little warmer, it speeds up the melting of the ice that had coated so many roads.” 

City offices, including City Court, will be open during normal business hours on Tuesday.

Knoxville Area Transit upgraded this afternoon from operating on Severe Snow Routes to normal Snow Routes. Multiple detours were added, however, to avoid icy spots along the routes. Updates will be posted on KAT’s social media pages and on www.KATbus.com.

Meanwhile, Waste Connections crews will resume collecting curbside residential trash and recyclables tomorrow, but on a one-day delay all week. Monday routes will be collected on Tuesday, Tuesday routes collected on Wednesday, and so forth through Saturday.

Due to refreezing on roads overnight, trash pickups won’t start until early Tuesday afternoon, and even then, some slick streets may still be unreachable by trash trucks. Waste Connections asks that residents leave their carts out if pickup is missed, and those homes will be serviced the following day.

Any overflow trash that doesn’t fit in the cart should be bagged and set next to the cart; overflow recyclables should be placed in a cardboard box or clearly-marked container next to the recycling cart on the resident’s next regular service day. Do not put overflow recyclables in a plastic bag, as the bags are not recyclable and can damage the sorting equipment.