Wisconsin lawmaker demands better snow removal (5:10 p.m. 12/29/09)

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A legislator incensed over snowstorm gridlock in Madison says he’s preparing a bill that would allow the state to set the city’s snow removal standards.

Commutes in Wisconsin’s capital city took hours in the days after a Dec. 8 snowstorm after Mayor Dave Cieslewicz decided to concentrate plows in residential areas. Cieslewicz has since apologized.

State Sen. Glenn Grothman, a West Bend Republican, said Madison taxpayers deserve better than that.

WKOW-TV reports that under Grothman’s bill, the state Department of Transportation would set salt and snow removal standards for the city. Other municipalities across the state would still set their own practices.

Cieslewicz spokesman Mario Mendoza said the city is evaluating ways to do better and Grothman’s bill isn’t needed.

Information from: WKOW-TV www.wkowtv.com