I don't know how many times I saw it on the news this weekend: somebody trying to plow through two feet of snow in their Civic, Corolla, or other lightweight front-wheel drive car.  As I trekked to Giant on Saturday, I paused in amazement as two people helped push a Prius backwards through the parking lot, all while a an Altima's wheels screeched in objection as it struggled towards the intersection.  Back home, Mayor Fenty was telling TV audiences to stay home and avoid driving, a sentiment echoed by the news anchors, yet outside cars still screeched and swerved up Eastern Avenue.  Storm coverage on Yahoo! featured slideshows of cars stuck, trapped, and wrecked.  Not even the President's motorcade was impervious to the treacherous conditions.

So why were people risking going out onto the roads? Maybe it's because their SUVs make them feel overconfident.  Maybe the guy digging out his Honda Civic across the street from me really has somewhere to go at 1pm on a Saturday.  Whatever the reason, there were very few reasons for anyone to be out, and far more reasons for them to stay inside.  The most obvious reason would be the risk posed to drivers themselves and their cars, but these people aren't the only ones affected by their reckless decisions. Every accident requires at the very least a police officer, if not an ambulance and fire crews as well.  These emergency crews are limited resources that could be used for more important purposes than pulling Range Rovers out of snow banks.  In addition, stranded cars can obstruct snow plows and other vehicles which might be legitimately be using the roadways.

The solution to these problems is a simple one, one that already exists in my home state of Ohio (and probably elsewhere).  Instead of just relying on the mayor and newspeople extolling the virtues of staying inside to persuade people to stay in, how about making it illegal to be out on the roads during snow emergencies?  Ohio's system has three levels which are instituted and enforced by county sheriffs.  The first two levels are merely warnings that give some idea of what sort of conditions drivers can expect when evaluating whether or not to take to the streets.  More importantly, when a level 3 snow emergency is declared, the roads are closed to non-emergency personnel unless the driver has a legitimate dire reason for being out.  Everyone else can be ticketed or even arrested.  The primary benefit of this system is deterrence, which would alleviate many of the problems listed above.  However, this system would also provide additional and much needed revenue for cleaning up the roads, as well saving money by reducing the number of stranded drivers who require emergency services.  At a time when virtually all state and local governments are facing budget crunches, even a few thousand dollars would be a welcome bonus.

Drivers in the DC area are bad enough when the conditions are perfect.  As it stands now, merely warning people about the dangers of driving in bad weather is not enough to deter many from taking to the streets and endangering themselves and others just to make it to Giant or Starbucks.  A system that deters drivers by punishing their mere presence on the road is the best way to keep the streets safe.