As the reality of winter commuting sets in once more across Minnesota, let us be aware of the danger in what has become known as “peephole driving.” As explored by this recent article in the Star Tribune, peephole driving is the operation of your vehicle aided only with only the visibility provided by a small ice-free patch that you’ve managed to scraped onto your winter-frosted windshield. No driver can reasonably be expected to see hazards like cars in adjoining lanes, bicyclists, pedestrians at crosswalks through such a pitiful hole of visibility…yet we have all seen them try.
This area of vehicle safety is covered in Minnesota Statute 169.71 Subd. 3, which states that “[n]o person shall drive any motor vehicle with the windshield or front side windows covered with steam or frost to such an extent as to prevent proper vision.” According to Lt. Eric Roeske of the Minnesota Highway Patrol, a citation for obscured vision can cost upward of $130. Of course, “proper vision” might be a debatable concept, but it becomes crystal-clear in the wake of a fatal accident.
