Photo: Ben Parker/WBZ NewsRadio
KINGSTON, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — Snowplow operators are hoping for a heavier winter this season, after a few years of light snowfall.
Boston hasn't had a season with more than 30 inches of snowfall in the past 3 years, and with trends in the rest of the state being similar, this has slowed down business for snowplow operators.
Ryan Donovan, who runs a small independent crew in Kingston, says each year winter seems to be coming later and later.
"We seem to be landscaping further into December than we ever have," Donovan said.
Donovan has started landscaping to make up for the decline in snowplow business, he said it's helped keep him and his crew busy.
"We can still put plants in the ground as long as we can put shovels in the ground. We like to keep as busy as we can," Donovan said.
Cost increases have also taken a toll on the snowplowing business, with rising inflation and other factors costing small crews like Donovan's more to keep running.
"The winter costs are always expensive, the last couple of years obviously with everything across the board, costs just keep going up," Donovan said.
The unusual weakening of the polar vortex this year and changing weather conditions could mean more snowfall for this season.
WBZ NewsRadio’s Jim MacKay (@JimMacKayOnAir) reports.