Street Sweeping During the Overnight Hours Begins Sunday, March 9, 2025

Starting on the evening of Sunday, March 9, Streets Division sweepers will be on the roads working 16 hours a day to collect as much salt, sand, and other grit and grime as we possibly can.

We will have one shift of operators sweeping from 10pm to 6am when the weather allows.  A different crew of street sweeping operators will be working from 7:00am to 3:00pm. Crews will be working these hours for up to six weeks, depending on weather conditions.

Why is the Streets Division doing this?

Running street sweepers extra hours is a normal part of the Streets Division operations as the seasons change from winter to spring.

We do this to collect as much of the sand, salt, and other debris that has accumulated in the roads all winter.

By collecting all of this debris, we are keeping this material from washing into the storm drains and out into our local waterways.

Street sweeping is not possible during the winter for two reasons.

Sweepers require water to work, so they cannot operate when temperatures are too cold, otherwise the sweeper vehicles would break.  And most of the sweepers require an annual maintenance overhaul at the end of the fall season.  This means that during the winter, most of the City’s nine sweepers are not available to be used even if conditions are unseasonably warm.

Why are you sweeping at night?

Street sweepers are very slow vehicles.

When they are actively collecting material, they move at a top speed of 5MPH.

It is considerably safer for the sweeper operators and the public to keep these very slow-moving vehicles out of conflict with traffic as much as possible.

During the overnight hours, there are very few people out on the roads, making it the safest possible time for our crews to perform extra sweeping.

How can I help the sweepers work during the overnight spring sweep?

The streets sweepers can only collect what they have access to along the curb. 

Please follow all posted parking restrictions.  And, if possible, please choose off-street parking options at night.

Do not to place the trash and recycling carts for your home carts in street gutter for collection.

When sweepers have to drive around obstructions, sections of road are left unswept until crews can rotate back through the neighborhood again, which can take weeks.

As a reminder to all roadway users, sweepers are very slow. Do not tailgate them. Do not cut them off.  They are out there working to keep our city clean and keep pollutants out of our water.

We understand it can be frustrating to be stuck behind one of these vehicles and we genuinely appreciate your patience. 

We regret any disruption to your daily or nightly routines, however it is important to note that the streets sweepers are doing important work for our local environment.

Additional Information

For more information about all of the Streets Division’s operations, including street sweeping, can be found on our website, cityofmadison.com/streets.