Driving Conditions Vary Widely

The only consistent thing about driving in these conditions is that it is difficult and should be done slowly. The snow is coming down heavily and visibility is poor. But the pavement conditions can vary radically in just a short stretch of road.

I just watched drivers in Silver Spring going from a neighborhood street that was white up to an intersection with University Boulevard that was clear right at the crosswalk, but very slushy as vehicles turned onto University. Fortunately, they were slowing way down to handle the turns, or they would have been in trouble.

Traffic is much lighter than it normally would be at this hour, with schools closed and some governments opening late. Nothing else is going well.

Lisa Baden on WTOP just reminded drivers to turn their lights on. Very good advice. The morning light and the snow make the contrast bad. But I was very surprised how quickly the windshield frosted over, even after I had warmed up for a while.

Main road conditions can go from okay to really bad, especially on overpasses and ramps. If you're going in late today, you're still likely to encounter poor driving conditions.The plows are out there and very active, but they are having trouble keeping up with the heavy snow at this hour.