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Fairfax County Public Schools returned to a regular schedule Monday, Feb. 9, for the first time since snow and ice struck the region in late January. Yet some students still faced hazardous sidewalks and blocked intersections while walking to school or bus stops.

In Franklin Farm near Herndon, ice remained on walkways surrounding a bus stop at Old Dairy Road and Tyburn Tree Court. A resident said families had to choose between crossing the ice, where one child had already fallen, and walking along the narrow road.

The resident, a single mother who had cleared her own property and helped neighbors, said she lacked the capacity to shovel the remaining stretches near the stop.

Efforts to report the problem revealed uncertainty over responsibility. The homeowners’ association pointed to the Virginia Department of Transportation because the agency owns the road. VDOT, however, said adjacent property owners are responsible for sidewalks and other pedestrian areas.

Alex Liggitt, VDOT’s Northern Virginia communications manager, said the department does not routinely remove snow or ice from sidewalks. It may address accessibility problems involving Americans with Disabilities Act requirements individually, he said, and planned to follow up with the HOA.

Fairfax County differs from Arlington and Alexandria because it has no ordinance requiring property owners to clear walkways. HOAs may establish and enforce their own rules, while the county generally asks residents and businesses to help keep community paths safe.

After reviewing the previous week’s cleanup response by VDOT and county employees, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors proposed a volunteer snow-removal program during its Feb. 3 meeting. Modeled on Alexandria’s Snow Buddy Program, it would connect volunteers with seniors, people with disabilities and others who need help shoveling.

Leaders seek a broader regional strategy

The Jan. 24-25 storm highlighted the need for a comprehensive regional snow-removal strategy that goes beyond conventional plowing, D.C. City Administrator Kevin Donahue said at a Feb. 11 recovery roundtable.

The Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments brought elected officials and administrators together to examine the response and prepare for future storms. COG Chair Reuben Collins II acknowledged that blame could be distributed widely but said the 90-minute discussion was intended to improve planning, not point fingers.

Several inches of snow were followed by additional sleet, creating dense frozen layers that remained in place during days of extreme cold.

D.C. officials, criticized for the pace of neighborhood cleanup, eventually began hauling snow and ice to the grounds of Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium to await warmer weather. Donahue said the hardened accumulation—sometimes called “snowcrete”—was only beginning to thaw and that the region remained in the final stages of recovery.

Montgomery County Chief Administrative Officer Richard Madaleno said normal procedures likely would have worked during a typical storm, but the combination of conditions was unfamiliar.

Many school systems, including FCPS, canceled classes for the entire week after the storm or even longer. Madaleno said families became increasingly tired and frustrated while parents remained home with their children.

Snow piles disrupted buses and intersections

Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority Executive Vice President Leroy Jones called for a regional review of how snow and ice are removed from bus stops to protect riders.

Snowbanks pushed toward the sides of streets also blocked intersections and prevented Metrobuses from making some turns. Detours remained in place for more than a week.

WMATA carried 1.5 million passengers from Sunday, Jan. 25, through Thursday, Jan. 29, even as much of the region was shut down. Jones acknowledged that the response did not unfold entirely as planned and said agencies must remain flexible enough to change course.

Alexandria Mayor Alyia Gaskins urged officials to modernize emergency communications for audiences accustomed to brief messages. She said many people now receive information through videos lasting one minute or less.

D.C. Council member Charles Allen said the cooperative tone of the meeting allowed officials to recognize successful parts of the response while studying its failures. Relentless criticism, he argued, could demoralize workers who made extraordinary efforts to keep the region operating.

Forecast changes complicated preparations

John Scrivani, Gov. Abigail Spanberger’s recently appointed state coordinator for the Virginia Department of Emergency Management, said the storm’s enormous reach and rapidly changing forecast complicated planning.

The National Weather Service initially warned Virginia officials of a potentially catastrophic storm, Scrivani said. As forecasts repeatedly shifted the boundary between snow and ice farther north, emergency planners adjusted their response.

Scrivani noted that the system stretched from Texas to Boston and said officials could not prevent the ice storm itself. He praised Virginians for staying off the roads when asked, allowing crews and contractors to clear major routes.

Virginia will use lessons from the storm to develop procedures aimed at accelerating recovery from future events, he said.

Collins, who also serves on Maryland’s Charles County Board of County Commissioners, said regional officials would return to the subject in a follow-up discussion.

The region has a history of expanding cooperation after severe winter weather. The 1987 blizzard prompted Northern Virginia, suburban Maryland and D.C. officials to coordinate more closely on storm responses.

About 280 people attended a briefing before the 2025-2026 winter season, and that collaboration continued afterward, according to COG senior public safety planner Eli Russ.