Snow emergency: In anticipation of a heavy snowfall expected to hit the Philadelphia area overnight and in the morning, the city has declared a snow emergency in effect starting at 6 a.m. on Thursday, March 5. If you parked your vehicle along one of the emergency routes the city wants you to move it. All vehicles remaining parked along the emergency routes after 6 a.m. will be towed. If your car is towed please call 215-686-SNOW.

Here are the snow emergency routes in West Philadelphia:

• Chestnut Street from Cobbs Creek Parkway to 20th Street
• Walnut Street from Broad Street to Cobbs Creek Parkway
• Woodland Avenue from Cobbs Creek Parkway to University Avenue
• 34th Street from University Avenue to Grays Ferry Avenue
• 38th Street from Walnut to University Avenue
• 63rd Street from City Avenue to Walnut Street
• University Avenue from 38th Street to 34th Street
• Island Avenue from Woodland Avenue to Enterprise Avenue
• Cobbs Creek Parkway from Walnut Street to Woodland Avenue
• Schuylkill Avenue from Market Street to Walnut Street

Trash collection: Snow emergency also means that there will be no trash and recycling pick up this Thursday because garbage trucks will be used for snow removal. If your trash collection day is Thursday please hold it until next Thursday. The Streets Department also announced that only trash and recyclables set out curbside will be picked up this Friday (no rear drive pick-up).

Schools: All public and Archdiocese schools will be closed on Thursday due to the snowstorm.

SEPTA: The following bus routes are currently on detour: 7, 9, 14, 19, 27, 28, 31, 32, 38, 44, 48, 52, 55, 56, 58, 62, 65, 84, 88, 90, 92, 93, 95, 97, 98, 99, 103, 104, 107, 109, 110, 111, 112, 114, 115, 117, 118, 119, 120, 125, 126, 131 and G. Information on the detours for specific routes will be published on the System Status section of the SEPTA website. Click on the weather icon next to the route for complete details.

As snow continues falling in Philadelphia, the School District of Philadelphia has announced that all public schools and prekindergarten programs will be closed today due to inclement weather. All Archdiocesan schools are also closed. Please go here for more information on other school closings.

SEPTA announced the following service changes in the area due to cold weather and icy road conditions.

Regional Rail: All SEPTA Regional Rail lines may experience delays of up to 20 minutes due to weather conditions.

Customized Community Transportation (CCT): Service is operating with delays of up to 60 minutes due to weather conditions. Customers should call the CCT Control Center at 215-580-7720 to cancel trips if they don’t plan to ride or to inquire about pending “Same Day” trips.

Market-Frankford Line: All trains are making all station stops due to extremely cold weather. There is no A/B express service for passenger convenience.

All public and Archdiocesan schools in Philadelphia will be closed on Tuesday, Jan. 27 due to the snow storm, and all after-school activities are canceled, according to the city government and School District of Philadelphia announcements released Monday night. City offices and courts will also be closed.

UPDATE: The latest estimate for snowfall during the overnight storm is 2 to 4 inches.

Stay tuned for more weather-related announcements.

UPDATE (8:35 p.m.): Mayor Nutter’s announcement on whether schools and city offices will be closed tomorrow is coming up at around 10:00 p.m. Stay tuned. The winter storm is expected to intensify overnight, according to Accuweather.

A snow emergency has been declared in the city beginning at 6 p.m. on Monday. If you parked your car on any of the snow emergency routes, please move it before 6 p.m.. Here are snow emergency routes in West Philadelphia:

• Chestnut Street from Cobbs Creek Parkway to 20th Street
• Walnut Street from Broad Street to Cobbs Creek Parkway
• Woodland Avenue from Cobbs Creek Parkway to University Avenue
• 34th Street from University Avenue to Grays Ferry Avenue
• 38th Street from Walnut to University Avenue
• 63rd Street from City Avenue to Walnut Street
• University Avenue from 38th Street to 34th Street
• Island Avenue from Woodland Avenue to Enterprise Avenue
• Cobbs Creek Parkway from Walnut Street to Woodland Avenue
• Schuylkill Avenue from Market Street to Walnut Street

If your vehicle remains on one of these streets it will be ticketed and towed. If your car is towed, call 215-686-SNOW to find out where it was taken.

The city has also cancelled trash and recycling pick-up on Tuesday. If your trash collection day is Tuesday please keep your trash and recyclables until next Tuesday.

UPDATE (2:50 p.m.): SEPTA has announced that Market-Frankford and Broad Street Line train service will operate all night:

MFL: Trains will run all night operating every 20 minutes from approximately 12AM-5AM. NiteOwl bus service will not operate.

— SEPTA (@SEPTA_MFL) January 26, 2015

Here are some more snow and cold weather-related reminders:

Remember homeowners you are required to shovel your sidewalks. Please do not throw snow into the street. You may be fined. — Philly311 (@philly311) January 26, 2015

#Noreaster has begun moving in & #codeblue is in effect. Call 215-232-1984 to help folks experiencing homelessness. http://t.co/8v7oDBtcz8

— Project HOME (@ProjectHOME) January 26, 2015

UPDATE (1/7/2015): If you’re on Twitter, you can report an unshoveled sidewalk to @Philly311:

@WestPhillyLocal @unshoveled I contacted @philly311 last year to report unshoveled sts. They got in touch w owners and snow got shoveled.

— Joselle (@JosellePalacios) January 7, 2015

@JosellePalacios @WestPhillyLocal @unshoveled Good morning! We are accepting shoveling reports!

— Philly311 (@philly311) January 7, 2015

(1/6/2015): Winter has finally arrived and reminded us all why we don’t like it that much. We wanted to pass along reminders about what to watch out for when temperatures drop below freezing and what to do when it snows. Stay warm and be careful as it’s slippery out there today.

City announces Code Blue

During bitter cold conditions, with temperatures near or below 20 degrees, the city issues a Code Blue weather advisory, which was announced at 6 p.m. on Monday. The Code Blue advisory triggers 24-hour outreach to homeless individuals and provides access to emergency housing network (see more here). If you see a homeless person outside and without a shelter during extremely cold conditions, you can call the Homeless Outreach Hotline at 215-232-1984.

Also a reminder to keep an eye on your pets and keep them inside when it gets too cold (or face penalties!). A new ordinance has been introduced in Philadelphia that makes it illegal to leave your dog outside during freezing (or extremely hot) temperatures. To report a dog left outdoors in severe weather call ACCT Philly at 267-385-3800 and dial 0 to speak with the dispatcher or email: fieldservices@acctphilly.org.

Winter Weather Advisory and Snow Removal

A winter weather advisory is in effect for today, and property and business owners are required to clear a path on the sidewalk within six hours of the end of the snowfall.

Residents and business owners must clear a path on sidewalk at least 36” wide within 6 hours of the end of a storm.

— Phila. Streets Dept. (@PhilaStreets) January 6, 2015

For owners of properties located on corners, the path should extend to the handicapped curb ramps to assist pedestrians and wheelchair users

— Phila. Streets Dept. (@PhilaStreets) January 6, 2015

The Philadelphia Streets Department has reminded that property owners are subject to a fine starting at $50 for not complying with this policy. To report a sidewalk that has not been cleared, call the Streets Department Customer Affairs Unit at 215-686-5560.

In case of a heavy snowfall with a large accumulation of snow, the City may declare a snow emergency. Snow emergency means that vehicles parked along the snow emergency routes must be moved to alternate parking spaces, so City crews can clear the snow along these routes.

Photo by Annamarya Scaccia.

UPDATED (2/15/2014): The snow emergency was lifted at 2 p.m. on Friday and it is now safe to park your vehicle on all snow emergency routes.

(2/12/2014, 4:11 p.m.): Here we go again. The city has declared a snow emergency beginning at 8 p.m. tonight, so if you’re parked on one of the snow emergency routes in West Philly you will have to move your car (see below). Public and parochial schools have also been closed for tomorrow ahead of the latest storm, which is expected to dump as much as a foot of snow on the city tonight through tomorrow. Early childhood and after-school programs are also cancelled.

Trash and recycling pick-up is also suspended for Thursday and Friday. Those who usually get rid of their trash on those days are asked to hold on until next Thursday or Friday.

Several major streets in West Philly will be affected, including Chestnut Street, Walnut Street and Woodland Avenue. If your vehicle remains on one of these streets it will be ticketed and towed. If your car is towed, call 215-686-SNOW to find out where they took it. If you have to move your car, city officials are asking you to move it as far from a corner as possible to allow the plows room to turn.

There is no word yet on when the parking ban might be lifted.

In West Philly, snow emergency routes include:

• Chestnut Street from Cobbs Creek Parkway to 20th Street
• Walnut Street from Broad Street to Cobbs Creek Parkway
• Woodland Avenue from Cobbs Creek Parkway to University Avenue
• 34th Street from University Avenue to Grays Ferry Avenue
• 38th Street from Walnut to University Avenue
• 63rd Street from City Avenue to Walnut Street
• University Avenue from 38th Street to 34th Street
• Island Avenue from Woodland Avenue to Enterprise Avenue
• Cobbs Creek Parkway from Walnut Street to Woodland Avenue
• Schuylkill Avenue from Market Street to Walnut Street