That must be a relatively new device to remove snow. When I was in NovoSibersk (New Siberia) in 1992, they simply spread ash on new snow to give the vehicles and pedestrians traction. As a result, by the end of the winter there was a 12-24 inch layer cake of ice that looked just like one of those icebox cakes with alternating white and black lines in the ice. The ice would last for months after the snow stopped.