Woodbridge, NJ Property Maintenance: Snow & Sidewalk Clearing (2026)
Key Facts
- Deadline
- 8 p.m. day after storm ends
- Clear width required
- At least 3 feet wide
- First-offense fine
- Up to $100 per day
- Repeat-offense fine
- Up to $1,000 per day
- Winter season defined
- Nov. 1 through Apr. 30
- Enforcing agency
- Woodbridge Police Department
- Township cleanup cost
- Becomes a property tax lien
Summary
Woodbridge property owners must clear at least a three-foot path of snow and ice from sidewalks bordering their property by 8:00 p.m. the day after a storm ends, or cover ice with sand, sawdust or rock salt if removal is impracticable. The Police Department enforces the duty under Chapter 3, with escalating per-day fines each winter season.
It shall be the duty of an owner of property, to remove or cause to be removed all snow and ice from the sidewalk(s) abutting or bordering the property of the owner, so as to create a patch for pedestrians at a width of not less than three (3) feet. Where the sidewalk is less than three (3) feet wide, the owner shall have the duty to remove or cause to be removed all snow and ice from the entire sidewalk abutting or bordering the property of the owner. The duty imposed upon the owner under Subsection a of this subsection shall be fulfilled not later than 8:00 p.m. on the calendar day after the calendar day on which the snow or ice storm ceases. In the case of ice which is impracticable to remove, the ice on the sidewalk(s) shall be covered with sand, sawdust, rock salt or some similar substance not later than 8:00 p.m. on the calendar day after the calendar day on which the snow or ice storm ceases.
Full Breakdown
Under § 3-23.1, an 'owner' includes anyone holding legal title to a lot abutting a public sidewalk, and 'sidewalk' means the hard-surface walkway along a street. Section 3-23.2 imposes the actual duty: owners must remove snow and ice to create a path at least three feet wide, or clear the entire walk if it is narrower than three feet, and must finish by 8:00 p.m. on the calendar day after the storm ceases. Where ice cannot practicably be chipped away, the code allows covering it with sand, sawdust, rock salt or a similar substance by the same 8:00 p.m. deadline.
Section 3-23.3 separately bars throwing, placing or depositing snow or ice onto any sidewalk or public street at any time, and § 3-23.4 forbids blocking handicapped parking spaces by plowing or piling snow into them. The Department of Police enforces §§ 3-23.2 and 3-23.3 and brings prosecutions in Municipal Court. If an owner still has not cleared the walk by 8:00 p.m. on the second calendar day after the storm, § 3-23.6 lets the Director of Public Works have the Township remove it instead, at the Township's expense.
The Director then certifies that cost to the Municipal Council, which charges it as a special tax against the property; under § 3-23.7 the amount becomes a lien added to the owner's next tax bill and draws interest, collected the same way as property taxes. Paying the removal fine under § 3-23.5 does not excuse the owner from also owing the Township's removal cost, per § 3-23.8.
Violations & Fines
Violating the clearing duty carries a fine of up to $100 per day for a first offense and up to $1,000 per day for any later offense within the same winter season, defined as November 1 through the following April 30 (§ 3-23.5). Dumping snow onto a sidewalk or street, or blocking a handicapped space with plowed snow, is a separate offense. Unpaid Township removal costs become a tax lien on the property (§ 3-23.7).
Frequently Asked Questions
How long do Woodbridge homeowners have to shovel snow from their sidewalk?
What happens if I miss the Woodbridge snow removal deadline?
Can Woodbridge Township clear my sidewalk and bill me for it?
Is it illegal to shovel snow into the street in Woodbridge?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Woodbridge
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Snow & Sidewalk Clearing in Nearby Cities
How other cities in this county handle snow & sidewalk clearing.