Our nation’s capital has passed an ordinance requiring motorists to clear their cars of ice and snow thereby making the city’s streets safe for the armed gangs that roam them. The Washington Times says that this makes D.C. the first city to pass such a law and that may be so but here in the land of Mommy Habits our state legislature enacted a similar law a year ago. Unlike D.C., which imposed no fine to its ordinance because the city council felt the rule too nebulous to actually enforce, our state legislatures showed no such hesitation and will whack you $100 bucks or so if you fail to clean your plate and your car.
Fine. I notice that our town school buses careen around town with snow on their roofs and why not? Who is supposed to clamber up on the roof to sweep off snow? The housewife-driver? Unlikely. Some laborer with a step ladder hire just for the occasion? That’s not in the budget. I recently saw one of our town police cars violating the law, a full eight hours after the snow fell and I didn’t have the heart to pull him over and make a citizen’s arrest. Next winter though, watch out, buddy.
Here’s how dumb laws like this come to be enacted, I suspect. Joe Legislator is driving up to Hartford and a chunk of snow flies off the car ahead of him and lands on his windshield, startling him (if there has ever been a fatal accident caused by this seasonal problem, I have never read about it ). “There ought to be a law,” the outraged politician mumbles and then he remembers: this is why he put up with all those boring rubber chicken dinners rubbing elbows with car dealers and PTA presidents. He is the law and can make new ones as he pleases. So he and his friends do, ignoring the obvious objections from truckers who park their 15′ high vehicles outside, school bus fleet operators and even local police forces that don’t garage their cars. They’re solving a problem that doesn’t need to be solved, they feel good and can tell their constituents that they’ve made them safer and isn’t it all grand? They then turn their dimmed wit to other pressing issues, like mandatory swish and spit fluoride programs for elementary school students. New Hampshire used to permit its legislatures to meet only every other year and then only for three months and that fine state was much the better for it. I suggest we go them one better, and close Hartford for all but one week every five years. If something comes up that requires a new law, we’ll have had plenty of time to consider possible solutions.
Uh, newsflash to Chris. Although I consider your blog the final word on all that matters in Greenwich (don’t worry, I’m not a stalker – much), this is an actual deadly problem for those of us who spend time where it snows a lot. When the ice sheet on top of that van in front of you slides off and crashes through your windshield at 60 mph, you might gain some insight – and lose some teeth, or a friend or…
Since there’s no stimulus check involved, how the hell do you get that a-hole to care enough to clean his truck – or Prius?
I think this is already a law in NJ.
Not removing snow from your car is thumbing your nose at everyone else, and is unsafe for you as well.
I clean the crud off my own car – I just object to well meaning legislators passing laws mandating what is really a simple act of courtesy towards others and worse, in the case of school buses and trucks, an impossibility. I am convinced that we’d better off if our governing bodies spent the next few legislative sessions repealing existing laws rather than adding new ones.