East Brandywine Township takes great pride in its ability to quickly and safely clear snow from the Township’s many miles of roadways. The Township also coordinates with PennDOT and private road owners to insure that all roads in the Township are cleared during major snow events. Township residents play a key role in the Township’s snow removal.

Before the Snow Falls

Make sure the front of your mailbox is at least four to six inches behind the front of the curb (or edge of the road) and mounted at a height of four feet. Mailboxes closer to the curb and lower to the ground are most likely to be damaged by the weight of snow being pushed from a plow. Take time to make sure your mailbox is sturdy enough to withstand the weight of snow being pushed into it. Make sure to clear any existing snow from all walkways, stairs and paths to mailboxes.

Trim tree branches hanging over the road. All tree limbs, shrubs, etc. that protrude into a roadway must be cleared by the property owners of the trees. Trees may not extend closer than a distance of three feet from the road and fifteen feet up.

Consider installing driveway markers. If your property does not have a curb or other method to delineate the edge of the street, orange driveway markers, available at home repair stores, can help plow drivers avoid damage to your property.

Keep culs-de-sac and roads free of parked cars from the time snow starts until the roads are cleared. In the case of steep driveways, park at the mouth of the drive, but off the road. If a car is parked on a roadside or cul-de-sac, we may not finish plowing that street, or may return several hours or even the next day to complete the work. Cars parked illegally or on Snow Emergency Routes are subject to towing and/or ticketing.

While Roads are Being Plowed

Do not place shoveled, blown, or plowed snow from driveways, sidewalks or parking lots onto public streets. This is extremely dangerous for vehicles on the road.

When shoveling your driveway, leave the last six feet of your drive unshoveled until street plowing is complete. This unshoveled part will allow the snow being pushed by the plow to remain on the plow and not dumped into your drive. If you must shovel out your drive, clear a six foot area of the road that is directly in front of the mouth of your drive. In addition clear an area ten feet before and after the mouth of your drive, so that when the plow comes through, it will unload snow that it is pushing into the cleared area and not in the mouth of your driveway. Use the image to the right as a guide for shoveling before roadways have been cleared.

Be Patient. Snow removal does take time, especially in cases of icing and/or heavy snowfall. The Township (as well as PennDOT) will usually plow potentially dangerous and heavily travelled areas first. Drivers begin one pass in each direction on streets and one pass into and out of culs-de-sac. Plowing may not be finished on the initial pass, but may be completed several hours
later or even the next day. Any residual snow will be pushed back from streets when the storm has ended.

Note that East Brandywine Township does not clear all streets within the Township. A map showing which parties have responsibility for plowing specific roads is below.

After Roads Have Been Plowed

Report any problems to East Brandywine Township at (610) 269-8230 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. on Mondays through Fridays. Please leave your name, address, phone number and the nature of the problem. Calls received after 3 p.m., on the weekends, or during snow emergencies may not be acted upon until the next business day. On Saturdays, Sundays or after 5 p.m., emergencies may be reported to the Chester County Police Dispatch at (610) 383-7000.

If you suspect your mailbox has been damaged by direct contact with a Township plow or the truck itself, please call the Township Roadmaster to file a report at the number above. The Roadmaster will inspect the damage to the mailbox, and at his discretion, authorize reimbursement up to $100.00. Should the Roadmaster determine that the mailbox or post was damaged by snow thrown off the plow blade, the Township will not be responsible for repair/replacement of the mailbox.  Please note that snow is thrown off the ends of plow blades by design at normal operating speeds and wet or heavy snow can damage mailboxes despite the Township's best efforts. 




The map aboves hows road ownership for the roads in our Township.  East Brandywine Township is responsible for the roads shown in green, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation roads are shown in orange, while private roads are shown in red or pink.