Getting individuals to work is not really the issue. We were able to get to the hockey game because we were determined to see Ovechkin put a beat down on Crosby :D
It's putting 500,000 people onto a rail/road system that's just not ready for them. It would be counter-productive to have the roads jammed packed with commuters when the snow removal equipment is still trying to open up enough lanes to handle such traffic. Like I said, it's a tough call and you are going to be criticized either way.

As far as schools go, even though our neighborhood has private contractors working around the clock trying to clear the snow, there is literally no where for the kids to wait for a school bus. Plus the counties have 100's of miles of roads to clear for the busses. When you make those school closing decisions you have to consider the entire county, not just the close in urban areas which get plowed quicker. I'm glad I'm not the one making the decisions!

Hopefully this next storm will shift and not hit us as hard so everyone can get back to work Wed or Thurs. Trust me, Tonya is pulling her hair out sitting at home. She actually getting a lot of work done from home, but would rather be at the office.