Salt Use Linked to Deterioration of Banff Avenue Sidewalks

Banff Avenue’s sidewalks are showing signs of structural failure, according to town documents and discussion at the Dec. 11 Streets Department service review meeting, where winter maintenance practices were identified as a key contributor.

The sidewalks are built from stone pavers, individual rectangular stones laid side by side to form the walking surface, rather than a single poured slab of concrete. Town staff say roughly 3,000 of the approximately 15,500 pavers along the 100 and 200 blocks of Banff Avenue now require rapid replacement.

The damage is not cosmetic. Inspections commissioned by the Town of Banff show the pavers are deteriorating from underneath, causing stones to loosen, crack, and shift. That breakdown creates uneven walking surfaces and increases the risk of trips and falls in one of the town’s most heavily used pedestrian areas.

Staff told councillors that the deterioration is structural and progressive, and cannot be addressed through surface patching alone.

Damage from the Bottom Up

A subject matter expert assessment commissioned by the Town of Banff found that the paver failures are being driven by a combination of factors: salt use, drainage issues, and ineffective grout between the stones. The most significant damage is occurring below the surface, where moisture and chlorides penetrate the joints between pavers, freeze and expand, and slowly break the stone apart.

That finding matters because it points directly to winter maintenance practices. Salt is one of the most effective tools for reducing slips and falls on icy sidewalks, particularly in high-traffic areas like Banff Avenue. But it is also corrosive. Over time, repeated applications accelerate wear on stone materials that were never designed to withstand heavy chloride exposure year after year.

Private Clearing, Public Consequences

Winter sidewalk clearing on Banff Avenue remains the responsibility of property owners, rather than the Town. Staff told council that businesses along the avenue generally do a good job keeping sidewalks clear, but the town does not control how that work is done. Techniques can vary, and in winter that often means scraping, chipping, and salting individual sections independently.

The result is a patchwork approach layered on top of a continuous stone surface. While effective in the short term for pedestrian safety, that approach has long-term consequences for the material beneath.

The Streets Department’s broader data shows that while abrasive use, such as sand, has declined in recent years, salt use has increased following a policy change that authorized greater chloride application for traction and ice control. That shift improved winter safety, but staff now link it directly to accelerated infrastructure wear.

In effect, the town bears the cost of winter safety twice: first through ongoing salt application, and later through premature sidewalk replacement.

From Assessment to Action

Staff outline two approaches. One would replace only the most hazardous pavers, roughly 3,000 stones, at an estimated cost of about $173,000. The second, and staff-recommended option, would replace all 15,500 pavers along the 100 and 200 blocks of Banff Avenue over four years, at a total estimated cost of $672,000, with work staged block by block to limit disruption during peak tourist seasons.

Following the service review, council carried a motion unanimously to prioritize the full paver replacement option, identified as Option 2, as part of the Town’s sidewalk improvement capital program for 2026 through 2029.

In supporting that direction, Mayor Corrie DiManno framed Banff Avenue as more than just a functional pedestrian corridor. She described it as “our iconic street,” one that appears in thousands of photographs seen around the world. “It’s a crown jewel,” she said, adding that while the approach costs more, maintaining that standard is part of Banff’s brand and ethos. “I think we need to live up to that aesthetic,” DiManno told council.

Staff warned that deferring replacement would allow further erosion, increasing trip hazards, and exposing the town to potential liability claims. Temporary fixes remain limited. Hazardous stones can be patched or replaced individually, but the underlying conditions remain unchanged.

An Uncomfortable Balance

The situation on Banff Avenue highlights a tension many winter cities face. Pedestrian safety demands aggressive ice control. But the materials chosen for streetscape design often struggle under those same conditions.

In Banff’s case, the stone pavers that help define the town’s image are proving vulnerable to the very practices that keep people upright in winter. Changing salt policy was not discussed during the service review and is not currently proposed in the Town’s budget documents. Staff made clear that safety remains the priority.

Instead, council has now endorsed a long-term capital response to manage the consequences. What began as a design choice has become a budget reality, one that will shape downtown construction and maintenance for years to come.