# Are people allowed to drive in NYC? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 27, 2015, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-people-allowed-to-drive-in-nyc/711040 "2015-01-27T19:34:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Jman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jman/32/4416_2.png) [@Jman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jman)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2015, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-people-allowed-to-drive-in-nyc/711040/41 "2015-01-28T22:00:36Z")
In Ohio we have these from time to time, and they’re simply part of the ‘snow emergency’ rating system. We have a 3 tiered system in Ohio and local news stations will simply tell you if your county is in a snow emergency and what level. Level 1 is very common, and will happen several times in any winter. Level 2 is less common but still happens around here 1-4 times a year on average. Level 3 is pretty rare, but I’ve seen it once or twice since I’ve lived in Columbus. Our levels are: Level 1 Snow Emergency: Roadways are hazardous with blowing and drifting snow. Roads are also icy; drive carefully. Level 2 Snow Emergency: Roadways are hazardous with blowing and drifting snow. Only those who believe it is necessary to drive should be out on the roadways. Contact your employer to see if you should report to work. Level 3 Snow Emergency: All roadways are closed to non-emergency personnel. No one else should be out during these conditions unless it is absolutely necessary to travel. All employees should contact their employers to see if they should report to work. Those traveling on the roadways may be subject to arrest. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-people-allowed-to-drive-in-nyc/711040/42 "2015-01-29T00:14:10Z")
> [@copperwindow](#): > > What about the people who get their food from meals on wheels? How is meals on wheels supposed to deliver? Mind you, if there actually IS an impassable blizzard going on, then there is no MOW service anyway, is there?. Depending on how the service works in your area subscribers may be issued an emergency rations kit for such contingencies, or the last delivery before service is cut off may provide them. **davida03801** : Every single state/county may declare the roads limited to only essential and necessary traffic during a state of emergency. It’s part of their powers. I guess I just can’t see where the incredulity or the sense that it is somehow “wrong” to do that comes from. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-people-allowed-to-drive-in-nyc/711040/43 "2015-01-29T01:00:01Z")
> [@copperwindow](#): > > What about the people who get their food from meals on wheels? How is meals on wheels supposed to deliver? They didn’t, at least not here in New Hampshire. They were included on the news crawl of “closed” entities. ---
**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 9:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-people-allowed-to-drive-in-nyc/711040/44 "2015-01-29T09:51:08Z")
> [@Derleth](#): > > The reason this is legal is because there is no Constitutional right to use the roads. Yes, and also because a ban on driving due to weather conditions doesn’t violate parts of the Constitution such as the equal protection clause of the 14th amendment. It would be unconstitutional to, say, disallow women to drive. This is not because driving is a right, but because laws and regulations must treat people equally. Similarly, it would be unconstitutional to ban the use of the roads to go to a peaceful demonstration, or to ban the use of the roads by people who are merely suspected of crimes. ---
**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-people-allowed-to-drive-in-nyc/711040/45 "2015-01-29T22:55:49Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > What provision of the Constitution do you think grants a right to drive anywhere at any time? > [@RivkahChaya](#): > > Given that cars didn’t exist when the constitution was drafted, I don’t see how there could be a constitutional right to use one. Wow. The idea that your right to do something needs to be specifically provided for is remarkable. (Where does the Constitution grant me the right to cut my grass? To decide what I should eat for dinner? Or when I should brush my teeth?) To state what I would have thought obvious: the Constitution does not undertake to define the rights of citizens. Instead, it aims to specify - and seriously limit - the role of government. ---
**Author:** ![Mr\_Downtown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Mr\_Downtown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Downtown)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2015, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-people-allowed-to-drive-in-nyc/711040/46 "2015-01-30T04:42:34Z")
Not only that, but it primarily limited the powers of the federal government. Your state could declare that no person may leave his domicile for the next week, and no part of the US Constitution would even be part of that discussion. ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2015, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-people-allowed-to-drive-in-nyc/711040/47 "2015-01-30T04:49:45Z")
> [@robert\_columbia](#): > > Are horse-drawn vehicles included in the ban? E.g. can I drive up to Amish Country, borrow some guy’s buggy, and ride it into NYC legally? Yes, I know it is probably not a good idea. I’m pretty sure you can’t have horse-drawn vehicles on the New Jersey Turnpike, so I’d have to stay on the back roads. Even if they’re exempt, they’re not allowed on the bridges & tunnels into NYC. You’d have to go pretty far north (Poughkeepsie maybe?) to find a bridge you could use. Bikes & peds can cross the GWB, but that’s in a separate walkway that, as I recall, won’t accommodate a typical Amish buggy. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2015, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-people-allowed-to-drive-in-nyc/711040/48 "2015-01-30T13:35:43Z")
> [@Spiderman](#): > > Even if they’re exempt, they’re not allowed on the bridges & tunnels into NYC. You’d have to go pretty far north (Poughkeepsie maybe?) to find a bridge you could use. Bikes & peds can cross the GWB, but that’s in a separate walkway that, as I recall, won’t accommodate a typical Amish buggy. And the wind would probably flip your buggy before you could make it over the Hudson. IF you did make it to NYC, you’ll be picked up by the ASPCA for abusing a horse. It wasn’t the Storm of the Century™ but with the very high winds and limited visibility at times it wasn’t safe for a horse to be outdoors working. A horse caught in a flipped vehicle is a sight you won’t want to see twice. ---
**Author:** ![LurkerInNJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ed655f/32.png) [@LurkerInNJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkerInNJ)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2015, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-people-allowed-to-drive-in-nyc/711040/49 "2015-01-30T21:35:59Z")
> [@Ethilrist](#): > > Freedom of assembly? lol. You’re funny. The only exceptions I know of for the ban are nurses, doctors, police, firemen and other emergency responders (EMS, 911 operators, etc), and city government workers going to and from work. Everyone else gets (at the very least) a ticket. They have the authority to arrest you if you are even riding your bike or a segway. ---
**Author:** ![dflower](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dflower/32/3270_2.png) [@dflower](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dflower)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2015, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-people-allowed-to-drive-in-nyc/711040/50 "2015-01-31T19:41:07Z")
When I lived outside of Washington DC and worked in the city I found what they mean when they say you can’t drive in a snow emergency. I had an accident (small damage, no injuries) and a state trooper was near by. He asked me “Ma’am, are you vital to the function of the government of The United States of America.” I was not so I was not allowed to drive into DC. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-people-allowed-to-drive-in-nyc/711040.md?page=2)