Maryland committee hears bill to ban driving with dangerous snow and ice on vehicles

Delegate Edith Patterson opened testimony for House Bill 474, called the Clear Before You Drive Act, arguing the measure targets a clear public-safety risk from snow and ice left on vehicle roofs, hoods and trailer tops. "Winter driving presents serious challenges, and those risks increase significantly when snow and ice are allowed to remain on vehicles," Patterson told the House Environment and Transportation Committee (for the record: Delegate Edith Patterson). The bill would bar operating or towing a vehicle when snow or ice on exposed surfaces contributes to an accident that causes property damage, serious bodily injury or death, and would make the prohibition enforceable as a secondary offense or when actual harm occurs.

The hearing included a short but striking first-person account from 3rd grader Lucy Goldband of Burning Tree Elementary School. "Last winter, my dad and I were driving in the car on the highway, and the car in front of us had snow and ice on its roof. It flew off. My dad had to swerve to get around it and it scared me," Lucy said, urging lawmakers to "Please vote for the Clear Before You Drive Act to keep kids like me and everyone else safe on the road." (Lucy Goldband).

Advocates aligned behind the bill. Regine Ali of AAA said falling ice and packed snow reduce visibility and have already caused locally reported crashes, including a shattered windshield in Anne Arundel County. "As a matter of safety, courtesy and common sense, we respectfully request a favorable report for House Bill 474," Ali said. Lewis Campion of the Maryland Motor Truck Association said his group supports the safety goal and has worked with the sponsor on amendments to address commercial-vehicle constraints. Campion described two key changes: (1) language to avoid forcing drivers to violate workplace safety rules (for instance, OSHA limits that can make clearing large trucks unsafe), and (2) a secondary‑enforcement approach with limits on repeated secondary citations within 24 hours.

Committee members asked practical questions about how large commercial trucks, school buses, port operations and long-haul drivers would comply. Campion and the sponsor acknowledged special operational limits for drivers without terminal access and noted some situations—such as containerized cargo at the Port of Baltimore—where drivers are prohibited from leaving cabs. The sponsor stressed the bill’s narrower scope: it requires clearing hoods, trunks, windshields, windows, roofs, cabs and the top of trailers or semitrailers; it does not attempt to regulate dimensional loads that do not fit those categories.

John Seng of the Maryland Coalition for Roadway Safety closed in support, describing snow and ice shedding at highway speeds as turning into "ice missiles" that have led to crashes. Committee members signaled understanding of the safety rationale and discussed technical amendments to balance enforcement and practicality.

What happens next: the sponsor requested a favorable report and the bill will return for committee consideration; no formal vote was recorded during today’s hearing.