How much snow does it take before the schools close in your city? (district, difference)

[RuralGuy]

In my area, just a dusting will do it. But the terrain is very hilly with a lot of winding, single-lane roads, which is challenging for school buses even on clear days.

Incidentally, we're getting hammered by snow right now--they're calling for roughly a foot of snow in the next 24 hours. We rarely get more than 3-4 inches at a time, so this is basically going to paralyze our region for a few days.

[HighlandsGal]

Here in Denver, not sure.....we really don't get that much snow! I think the most we have gotten on a school morning is a few inches, and we have only one hour delays. No snow days yet here.

[BagongBuhay]

When we lived in central CT, oh about 8" should do it, but more school closures were due to ice rather than snow. In the early part of winter, when the snow budget was full, snow plows are revving at every corner, ready to catch every snowflake before it hits the ground! If it is a particularly snowy winter, and the budget was blown early on, geez, you can't get out of your driveway for half a day or more while they wait for the snow to stop.

[2mares]

Rural guy: I hope I see some of that tonight in TN. Nothing here yet.

John, Just the threat of snow closes school here in Putnam/Cumberland Co.
the school a co-workers daughter goes to Jackson Co. is closed today, because the girls basketball team won the tournament.

In the 8 yrs. I attended school in Dayton, OH we never had a snow day.

[Bydand]

Usually it is more tied to the wind than the snow depth. We live in a farming area so there is a lot of open fields and if it is real windy coupled with deep new snow we can get drifts of 8 or 10' on the roads. They close the schools then. Mostly it is due to ice and freezing rain. Here is the only photo I have of the boys waiting for the bus. We only had 8 or 10" the morning I took it so it isn't very much, but it is the only one I have right now.

[Green Irish Eyes]

The rule of thumb here in New York City is that if the subways are running, schools are in session.

And, basically, the subways are ALWAYS running .....

[pegmomof4]

John,

You brought back a favorite childhood memory for me, SNOWBIRD!!! I grew up in Nashville, TN, and as a child, I just held my breath watching snowbird to see if school would be cancelled. I went to Catholic school, so we were less likely than the public schools to get cancelled.

I am now in NC, we have had an ice day here or there, or a 2 hour delay for ice, but we have not had a snow day in a few years.....it would not take more than a sliver to keep us home.

[car54]

It doesn't take much around here (VA suburbs of Wash DC). The Transportation bosses drive around early and make the decision to close, delay, or open on schedule. Talk about a THANKLESS job! If after closing schools, the sun comes out and everything is fine, the parents are irate! If they don't close and a child is injured, the parents are calling their lawyers.

They like to err on the side of caution, especially after a morning about 5 years ago. It was raining and the temp was about 33 degrees....forecast called for temps to rise to high 30's. They opened schools at the normal time. Just after our 1300 buses started rolling, the temperature plummeted into the 20's and roads started icing almost immediately. We wrecked 45 buses in less than an hour!

So, it has nothing to do with being wimpy...there's a LOT of lives and money at stake.

PS: I say "we" because I drive a school bus for the County.

[dynimagelv]

Here in Las Vegas they closed the schools one time for 1/4 in. of snow.....

[georgiainwyo]

We don't close for snow here in my town in Montana. At least all of the kids in town can get to school no matter what. In a smaller town I lived & taught in we had one snow day and it was because so many of the kids lived out of town and the roads were so bad the buses couldn't commute. It's funny how relative weather is to the area of the country where one lives. It's all in what you're used to!