Clearing entire windshield, car is important

Completely clearing your windshield is important to keep yourself, your passengers, and the other drivers on the road safe.

It is a petty offense in South Dakota to have an obstructed windshield with a low fine, but the city ordinance in Rapid City is much greater and the fine is $122.

Clearing the snow and scraping the ice off of a car windshield and the rest of the car is important.

"It's not necessarily obstructed windows, it's every piece of glass on the car," said Tim O'Reilly, a Senior Police Officer with the Rapid City Police Department. "So, if you haven't cleaned the snow off of the roof of the car, and you're driving down the street and that big avalanche off the roof that covers up the back window now, you got to clean up."

O'Reilly says that anything obstructing a windshield is illegal, the exceptions being a temporary license plate or a seller's permit.