Video shows snowplow driving fast on Kansas City street. Was it going too fast?

A Kansas City snowplow charging through the Waldo neighborhood early Tuesday morning caused Frankie Bellucci to wake up in irritation.

Bellucci, a Waldo resident on West 85th Street for over three decades, estimated the snowplow was going around 45 mph down his city street just after 3 a.m. It is unclear how fast the snowplow was, in fact, driving through the neighborhood. On Bellucci’s social media post, a neighbor said the snowplow was going so fast that it shook her house.

Video taken from his security camera shows the snowplow moving so fast through the neighborhood that white clouds formed, periodically covering the street from view. The speed limit for the road is 35 mph.

“Those guys were out having fun, driving down the street in the middle of the night, had no people watching,” Bellucci said.

“Who knows what they were thinking, but it’s careless.”

City spokesperson Sherae Honeycutt said in a statement that snowplow operators are held to a strict speed limit of 20 to 25 mph. That standard is “consistently reinforced before each shift.” The public works department also conducts snowplow driver training that includes safety protocols, route planning and emergency procedures, Honeycutt said.

“Practical exercises provide hands-on experience maneuvering through city streets, managing different weather conditions, and effectively utilizing the internal plow tracking system,” she said. “Kansas City prioritizes neighborhood safety and takes community concerns very seriously. The City investigates all concerns thoroughly and appreciates how much residents care about this community.”

Honeycutt did not specify whether this incident would be investigated.

Former water and public works supervisor Robert Oxler, who also commented on Bellucci’s post online, told The Star that when traffic is limited, it is common for snowplow operators to drive faster to get the job done quicker and to plow snow more efficiently.

“[The driver] is probably kicking that snow far enough up on the curb or in the yard to where the homeowners don’t come out and put that snow right back in the street with their snow blowers when they’re clearing their driveways and sidewalks,” Oxler said.

Bellucci said he is “hyper-aware of city services and residential and commercial developments” as a real estate agent. He said he didn’t report the incident to the city, however, because he believes “nobody cares”. This incident, he said, adds to his frustration of consistent fast-moving vehicles through the neighborhood.

“If the city says that those trucks are supposed to go 20, 25, miles an hour, well, then that’s what they’re supposed to do,” Bellucci said. Bellucci doubts that anything will change after this incident.

Oxler said if he received a complaint about drivers going too fast as a supervisor, he likely wouldn’t discipline them.

“If the roads are empty and there’s nobody around, I don’t see anything wrong with what that driver did,” Oxler said.

Honeycutt said city crews have “high standards of care and responsibility” when working in the streets.

“Kansas City appreciates residents’ patience during this difficult winter and their cooperation as the City continues improving its response,” she said.