Curfew! City Of Newnan Sets 5pm As Time To Get Off Roads
There’s been many levels of official and unofficial advisories to urge motorists to stay off roads that have seen up to 3″ of snow, and face certain patches of black ice as overnight temperatures return to the teens. The City of Newnan (and possibly Coweta County) have issued a curfew from 5pm tonight until 10am tomorrow, threatening possible fines and jail time for violators per the Newnan Times Herald:
The order exempts those providing essential services, such as fire, law enforcement, emergency medical services and hospital services, military services, and utility emergency repairs.
Also employees of local industries traveling to and from their jobs with appropriate identification, news media employees, building and repair contractors, properly registered, performing activities related to construction, repair, renovation or improvement of buildings and other structures damaged during the disaster or emergency are also exempt.
Those caught violating this ordinance, upon conviction, could face a fine of up to $1,000 or 60 days in jail.
A similar announcement from Coweta County is expected soon.
I expect our libertarian leaning readers will take exception to whether this is an appropriate or even legal exercise of law enforcement. (They’ll then devolve into comments that all roads should be private, taxation is theft, bitcoin is the only true currency, and Ron Paul is a viable candidate in 2020). The point is this: We get a lot of over hyped events. In many areas of the state, a combination of heavy precipitation and temps almost 20 degrees below freezing create a real hazard on roads. 4wd won’t save you on black ice. Take measure of the conditions and decide if your trip is a necessity before attempting it.
About Author
Charlie
Founder of GeorgiaPol.com; Now weekly columnist Very interested in Georgia and Georginas. Interest in politics is waning daily.
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I completely agree that icy roads can be dangerous and if you know your ability on a sheet of ice is not up to snuff, you should keep your F250’s in the driveway if you don’t know how to start a car from a stop on ice with out spinning your wheels or how to brake/stop a car with out sliding through an intersection or making a donut when you don’t intend to do so.
However; I swear most of you would not have survived my 2017 Christmas break in Wiscoonsin. Without salting the roads yet and a few inches of ice and snow, my mom ‘made me’ – as in demanded and then used good old Catholic mother guilt – drive her in a minivan to a birthday party after 5:00 PM.
(Disclaimer – first time dad took me out to learn to drive was on a frozen lake in a 1973 Opel with bald tires when I was 12. He was a strong believer in Darwin.)
Question, how do you curfew a whole interstate? Do you put a dozen cruiser across the highway Smoke and the Bandit style around the Shoal Creek Bridge while a Gandalf like state trooper stands on the divider line yelling “Y’all Shall Not Pass”, or what exactly.?
Anyone with your experience or less with a 20 year old Subaru and decent all-weather tires could go anywhere the police could go and do so faster, and so not get caught.
With a city manager government, the mayor is about as important as the Queen of England (but not as loved). He has so much time on his hands to be an officer in so many organizations, I think this is his “me too” moment to get his name on TV.
Some folks are against unnecessary regulation, except when they aren’t.