Walsh: Patriots Super Bowl Parade Still On For Wednesday, Despite Snow
BOSTON (CBS) -- The Patriots Super Bowl victory parade is still on for Wednesday at 11 a.m., despite the record-setting snowfall in Boston over the past week, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh said.
The duck boats were originally set to roll on Tuesday, but that plan was pushed back 24 hours, after Walsh said schools would be closed Tuesday due to snow.
"We can have a parade in the city of Boston," Walsh said at a Tuesday press conference. "It's been what we've always done after a championship team wins."
The parade will start at the Prudential Tower, move up Boylston Street and eventually end at City Hall. Unlike some past parades, there will be no rally at City Hall Plaza because of the bitter cold and large amounts of snow.
WBZ-TV's Jim Armstrong reports
More than 40 inches fell in Boston over a seven-day period, and some are concerned about dangerously high snow banks. A snow emergency and parking ban will be lifted Tuesday at 6 p.m.
"If I felt it was going to be a public safety issue, I would've canceled it," Walsh said about the parade.
The police department will be making sure paradegoers do not climb on snowbanks, he said.
Boston is still under its roughly $18 million budget for snow, but that may not be the case for long.
"If we continue to get the snow we're getting, we're gonna shatter our budget for snow," Walsh said.
The mayor is asking people not to walk on the streets as the city tries to move the snow to snow farms or melt it.
"The snow is going to be here for a while," Walsh said. "We're asking you to be patient."
Even before the Super Bowl win, the city put in some extra work over the weekend to try and keep the parade route clear.
Walsh told WBZ-TV Monday morning that, without attracting any attention, crews were out prior to Sunday's game carefully plowing some of the areas where the boats might travel.
Walsh added later that the city is working to clear snow in every neighborhood, not just the parade route.
Others have wondered why the rally can't be held on the weekend, but the mayor said the decision is to accommodate the players.
"The reason for the rally tomorrow is because the players leave Boston, leave New England, go on vacation with their families," Walsh said. "It's no longer a work day for them."
WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Karen Twomey reports:
