Metro Vancouver prepares for first potential snowfall of the year

After an extraordinarily mild December, snow blanketed the Sea to Sky Highway Friday afternoon and into the night.

Environment and Climate Change Canada said approximately 15 to 20 centimetres fell on B.C.'s main traffic artery to Whistler.

It's perhaps a sign of what's to come in Metro Vancouver. Meteorologist Armel Castellan said there could be snowfall as early as this weekend in higher elevation areas, including Port Coquitlam, SFU’s Burnaby campus and West Vancouver.

“Late Sunday would be the earliest start at this point, probably – it’s really the early morning hours of Monday," said Castellan.

The projected snowfall will likely be short-lived, he added.

“We expect this to be one of those kind of meteorological medleys with the slush, that kind of situation, at worst," said Castellan.

Although a major snowstorm isn't expected, crews around the region are staying ready.

"We're very well prepared," said Matt Brown, roads and drainage manager with the City of Surrey. "Our team's excited to see the snow and we're ready to get out there."

Brown said his team will begin brining the roads this weekend, and has around 14,000 tonnes of salt in storage. His dispatch team monitors the roads by utilizing approximately 500 traffic cameras and road sensors scattered throughout the city relaying information in real-time.

Meanwhile, the provincial government says it's also made changes to help prevent traffic chaos on main routes, including bridges and highways.

"The improved approach includes strategically placing heavy tow vehicles during a storm event to clear stuck commercial and passenger vehicles so plows can get through, and placing plow and sand trucks in areas where they are less likely to be impeded by vehicles unprepared for winter conditions," said the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure in an emailed statement to CTV News.

In Vancouver, the city says it improved its fleet with two new vehicles that specialize in clearing snow and ice on bridge sidewalks.

TransLink is testing new winter-rated tires on a third of its fleet, aiming to improve on the several challenges buses faced last year in the snow-covered terrain.

Although temperatures are set to drop, Environment Canada says it's too early to forecast a major snowstorm.

“Not yet a slam dunk forecast," said Castellan. "Contrary to a lot of the chatter out there right now.”