It is important that Harford County establish a “North Harford Zone” (Zone) to generate additional flexibility to closing, delaying the opening or calling for an early dismissal due to inclement weather in the North Harford area because of the difference in weather conditions in the northern part of the County compared to other areas.

What has been raised as a compelling argument for the implementation of the “zone” is the public outcry when a flash freeze occurs (usually at sunrise) in the northern area or when an unforcasted weather event presents itself without warning. Establishment of a separate zone would not mitigate these issues once school buses have begun rolling. The procedure, which has been put into place when this occurs, is to find a safe location and pull over to the side of the road and wait until it is safe to proceed. With or without a separate “zone”, this procedure would remain the same in these situations.

The establishment of a "zone" would also alleviate some of the hardship when the entire county closes schools because of weather mainly affecting the Northern part of the county as has happened several times this winter.

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