Winter comes every year, yet somehow it still manages to catch us off guard. Calgary’s latest snowfall on Nov. 24 was another reminder that even a city used to harsh winters can grind to a halt when the snow piles up fast enough.
Calgary International Airport had to pause operations for just over an hour due to “heavy and accumulating snowfall.” Only an hour yet the disruption rippled across the entire day. Delays stacked up across airlines: Air Canada, WestJet, Flair, Porter, Delta nobody was spared. The airport’s spokesperson did their best to assure travellers that crews were “always ready,” but the reality is clear: one strong burst of snow is enough to snarl one of the country’s busiest airports.
To the airport’s credit, operations resumed by 9 a.m. MST. But the expectation of ongoing delays shows that being “prepared for winter” is not the same as being able to keep everything running smoothly. Winter readiness often sounds better in press releases than it looks in practice.
Across the city, the story wasn’t much different. Calgary Transit activated city-wide snow detours pre-emptively a smart move on paper, yet the result was familiar: “major service delays” on multiple routes. Buses stuck, commute times stretched, and transit riders left dealing with yet another cold-weather headache. It’s almost a winter tradition at this point.
The roads were no better. Calgary Police reported 186 collisions by late morning 16 with injuries, 141 non-injury, and 29 hit-and-runs. That’s not a transportation statistic; that’s a portrait of a city struggling to keep moving when the roads turn white. The snowfall wasn’t a freak blizzard, either 10 to 15 centimetres, the kind of winter weather Calgary has seen countless times.
Of course, Environment Canada’s forecast didn’t offer relief, with more snow expected on Nov. 27 and 28. And this early-season mess raises a real question: Are we truly prepared for the winter ahead, or are we simply hoping for the best each time the snow flies?
The airport thanked travellers for their patience. Transit urged riders to expect delays. Officials encouraged people to leave extra time. In other words, the burden keeps falling on residents to adjust to the system rather than the system adapting more effectively to winter reality.
Every year, Calgary declares it’s ready for winter. Yet every year, we watch the same disruptions: delayed flights, stuck buses, treacherous roads, and hundreds of collisions.
Maybe it’s time to stop pretending the problem is the snow. Winter isn’t the surprise our level of preparedness is.
