Property owners must clear snow and ice from the sidewalk abutting their land. Cities set the deadline by ordinance — Salem requires clearing within six hours after snowfall stops — with fines for each day it stays uncleared.
MGL c.85 §5 lets cities and towns require abutting owners to remove snow and ice from public sidewalks and to set the time, manner, and penalties. Salem requires clearing a path at least three feet wide, or the sidewalk's full width, within six hours after snow stops or the snow-emergency lights go off; overnight storms must be cleared before noon. Fines run $50 for a first offense and $100 for each repeat.
Uncleared sidewalks draw a written notice, and each additional 24 hours is a separate offense. Salem fines $50 first, $100 per repeat, and bans plowing snow back onto streets or abutters.
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