Metro (Appleseed) Fair And Honest Review
We used to use Appleseed / now Metro - but we don't anymore. The company rates seemed reasonable enough, and they were generally reliable in that they didn't just take the money and leave you hanging dry. The company does an ok job at communicating, but the notes they send are a bit quirky perhaps.
We quit because of a few things: the service was not timely enough. It's too late if we have to leave in the morning and the plow is not yet done (but was explained it would be done during the day). On heavy snowfall days, we would be often waiting hours - up to 36/48, for clearing to be done. That made us feel "stuck" in our home. we could have cleared much it faster the old fashioned way, before too much snow had accumulated. Then often we would get notes that the drivers were "fatigued" and needed to take a break. Sorry, for us that rung hollow. It's time to work flat out, during a few days of the winter with frequent rest in between. Then there were the sub 5cm snow days. Many of those - so we were often shovelling ourselves. Then the final problem for us was the late winter snowfalls that weren't cleared - as it appears that warmer weather was in the forecast and it would just melt off. It should have been cleared.
So -- too much management for us. Would also like to know how TouchPlow one-time folks are queued up vs. those with full winter contracts. Not sure about that.
- Approximate cost of services:
- $400.00
- Company Response
Thanks for the balanced reveiw.
Sorry your're not with us this winter.
To answer your questions...over a 36 hr period 'every' driveway is cleared at least once. Its policy and if you are early in the route you were probably cleared near the beginning of his route and much more snow fell prior to his second visit. City grader dumps are unpredictable at the best times but they do their best to chase them.
Regarding 'working flat out'. I work the drivers between 14-18 hours straight with small breaks. They need rest or they will miss driveways, possibly damage property and....it's the law! I do call in several 'backups' to drive through each zone looking for missed areas while your driver is taking a short 4 hour rest. We actually supply "sleeping bunk trailers' in our yards for 'quick naps'. Many drivers are rural farmers from out of town and to send them all the way back for a 4 hour rest is not practical.
JWith very expensive equipment of course I want it out 'clearing snow' as much and as long as possible. It serves no one (including me) to have tractors sit idle in the yards.
Lastly, TouchPlow is a completely different service and has no effect on our snow clearing. To be frank I can count on one hand in 2 years how many tractor drivers of mine have even accepted a job. These ' TouchPlow jobs' are usually picked up by a 'man with plow' who can drive quickly from job to job. My tractors cant and they are on a 'designated routes & timeline' so they simply cant do those jobs during storms.
Hope this helps
Ken Dale
President