The Town of Sand Lake Highway Department provides residents with quality snow and ice removal, road repair, signage, drainage, tree and brush cutting and removal within the Town's right of way. Ten department personnel maintain 85.16 miles of road or 170 lane miles.
Report a road problem or report a street light outage below.
Snow Removal
Winter season presents the Highway Department with one of its greatest challenges. Conditions from snow to sleet to ice to freezing rain to rain create difficult driving conditions.
The Highway Department takes great pride in meeting those challenges head on. The department's goal is to provide safe and expedient snow removal and asks residents to avoid parking on streets during snow events. The removal of snow during heavy snow events becomes a tedious and difficult job for our crews.
Please be patient and drive safely. Avoid unnecessary travel during snow events if at all possible.
Department Equipment
The Department has seven trucks (4 tandems, 1 single axle and 2 pickups) that provide snow removal for the Town. Each truck is responsible for 12 to 14 miles of road (24 lane miles). The pickups are mainly used on small roads in the villages and around the Town's seven lakes.
A mix of salt and sand is applied each winter using Town-owned sand. Early winter a mix of 6 parts sand to 1 part salt is used and during severe cold winter, the mix will change to 3 parts sand and 1 part salt for better effect. Using Town owed sand is a cost savings and is more environmentally friendly.
How Residents Can Help
The following information will help residents to understand the snow removal policy and what is expected from them.
- Ensure your mailbox is installed properly. Mailboxes installed too low or too close to pavement edge are susceptible to being struck by plow wings.
- Do not throw snow from walkways or driveways onto the road. Most people don't know this, but it's actually against the law. New York State Vehicle and Traffic Law section 1219 (a) states: No person shall throw or deposit upon any highway any glass bottle, glass, nails, tacks, wire, cans, snow or any other substance likely to injure any person, animal, or vehicle upon such highway.
- Please clear all your vehicle windows before travel. See and be seen. Slow down when in the area of snow removal operations. Working together we can make this and every snow removal season a great success.
Road Repair
The goal of the Highway Department is to provide the best roadway system possible within the confines of the budget allocation. Approximately 2/3 of asphalt products for road repair are produced using Town owned aggregate which is a cost savings for the Town.
Repairs are usually accomplished during the months of April to November. However, pothole patrols and maintenance continue throughout the year. If you spot a problem, please let us know by completing the road repair form or emailing the Highway Department.
Signage
The Town maintains regulatory signs such as: yield, stop, speed, directional, and school crossing, etc. Our goal is to maintain them in readable condition.
If you notice a town sign that has lost its reflectivity or is difficult to read, missing or damaged, please tell the department. Your help is appreciated.
Drainage
Proper drainage is a major factor in maintaining good pavement life and road condition. No other single factor affects pavement performance more.
The Highway Department corrects drainage before each of the Town's roads is paved.
There have been occasions where culverts have been lost or buried over the course of time. If you're aware of such a culvert, please contact the department before your road gets paved. Together we can make the effort successful.
Tree and Brush Cutting
Our goal is to maintain good visibility for the traveling public. Trees or brush within the Town's right of way that limit visibility will be removed. These trees present a hazard to vehicles especially snow plows and school buses. Please give us a call if you notice a hazard.
Disposal Services
Brush, leaves, tree limbs accepted free of charge at Town Garage, 25 Springer Rd. West Sand Lake, Monday thru Friday 7am to 3pm, please drive around to the pile in the back.
Household trash and recycling go to the Town Convenience Facility.
Report a Road Problem or Request Repair
To report a problem, request a repair, or ask a question, please complete the form. Someone will contact you as soon as possible.
Report a Street Light Outage
The Town Board needs your help in identifying street light outages along town roads. If you notice an outage, please email Councilwoman Mason: kmason@sand-lake.us with the following information:
- type of fixture
- pole number
- street address
- cross street or landmark
The Town's street light outage form asks for the following.
Source: townofsandlake.us/highwaypublicworks and its linked service pages, /highwayreportform, Report a Street Light Outage and /townboard, copied November 11, 2026.