conga line

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conga line (plural conga lines)

1. A line of people dancing the conga.
2. (figurative) A succession of similar events, especially a quick, unstoppable, and/or comical succession.

   The politician's vainglorious boasting was quickly followed by a conga line of embarrassing defeats.

3. (Canada, Northern US, figuratively) A moving formation of snowplows and/or similar equipment, arranged in a diagonal line across a multilane highway, airport runway, or other roadway, such that the snow from the first vehicle is passed to the second, and then from the second to third, and so on, thereby clearing much or all of the route's width in a single pass.
   • 1968, Arthur Hailey, Airport, Doubleday, page 56:

     It was a pity, Mel Bakersfeld reflected, that runway snow teams were not on more public view. . . . Airport men called the group a Conga Line.

   • 1999 January 5, Amanda Jelowicki, “Heavy going: Road crews will be out till Thursday to clean up first big snowfall”, in The Gazette, Montreal, Canada, page A3:

     Plows, snowblowers and dump trucks have formed their winter conga lines, and most Montreal Island cities say they'll have streets and sidewalks cleared of snow by Thursday.

   • 1999 January 16, “Welcome to Spin City: Heavy Snow Highlights Drivers' Bad Judgement”, in Toronto Star, Canada, page W1:

     The trip took longer than usual–following the snow plow conga line, and dodging spinning Expeditions and Jimmys as they pirouetted off the road.

   • 2000 January 26, “Snow Cleanup Choreographed”, in Worcester Telegram Gazette:

     On highways such as I190 and I290 a conga line lets plows make a clean sweep from curbline to curbline on one pass he said.

   • 2001 February 22, Matthew L. Wald, “Getting Snow Off Runways”, in New York Times, retrieved 13 Aug. 2011:

     The plows move in a "conga line," one tossing snow to the next.

• Goclenian, congenial