TRENTON, N.J. — The Garden State is officially the first jurisdiction in North America to require that drivers remove snow and ice from atop their cars, trucks, and trailers.

After much debate over the last year, Gov. Jon Corzine this week signed the controversial mandate into law, according to local media. It is set to take effect next year.

Drivers that pull away without making "reasonable efforts" to remove caked on ice and snow can be pulled over by police and face fines up to $75.

More than a few states and provinces, including Quebec, have set fines if the snow or ice — casually called "ice missiles" by some — projects from the vehicle. And even then, enforcement is rare unless it causes property damage or injury.

This rule, however, appears to be the first legislation in the U.S. or Canada to target drivers before the fact.

The law states that drivers will not be liable for accumulation that occurred while out on the road, provided they have not already passed a location that provides snow-removal devices or technology.

As well, drivers won’t be responsible for snow or ice accumulated while the vehicle, trailer, or container was not in their possession. 

Some carriers have built makeshift
snow-removal apparatuses with varying
degrees of success. This one, from
Erb Transport, is said to work great.

Such provisions are vague and impossible to enforce fairly, says the Owner-Operators Independent Drivers Association.

"How is a cop going to tell the difference between something accumulating while it’s out in operation versus sitting?” questioned Joe Rajkovacz, OOIDA’s regulatory affairs specialist. "I understand the roof will pile up if it’s sitting. But that doesn’t mean snow and ice can’t accumulate on the roof going down the road. The cop still gets to decide when the snow accumulated."

While flying ice on the highway is certainly an issue, there are a limited practical solutions for truck drivers in particular.

As Today’s Trucking explored in this feature earlier this year, there are surprisingly few snow and ice removal systems in the market. And those that do exist can be very pricey.

And what’s an owner-op to do if he doesn’t leave from a company terminal with snow removal options when he starts his day?

Climbing atop of a trailer without proper fall protection gear is dangerous; and in many regions, probably against the law too.

A study by American Transportation Research Institute examined several other strategies, but few are viable, at least in the short-term.

More immediately, though, if governments are going to impose such mandates, many truckers think they should lead by example by installing ice-scraper scaffold devices at weigh scales and other enforcement stations.