thursday. here's a look at the day planner with temperatures right now 40 in washington. mid-40s at noon to the upper 40s at 5 don't. p.m. with mostly cloudy skies. stray shower chance north and west of d.c. rain into indiana and ohio. around here, the clouds will make it whether or not the showers make it, not as likely but some of them, some of them, i think could sneak toward the valley. win chester, martinsburg, 37. manassas, the cold spot at 32. while it is 40 from lou ann in annapolis. 32 in tappahannock airport and la plata this morning, you're checking in with 35 degrees. get ready. mostly cloudy today. again, a stray shower north and west with 40s in the shenandoah valley to around 50 here in d.c. let's go over to monika samtani. new information. >> yes, there is. if you're planning to head on the southbound side of i-270, there is an accident. in fact, let's go ahead and look at it live on the southbound side after father hurley boulevard. traffic was pretty much at a

standstill for awhile now. state police have not arrived on the scene yet. i've been look at this for the last few minutes and you want to be aware that one, if at all lanes are getting through this area. so, be aware of that on the southbound side of i-270. let's take a live look at the southbound side of i-950. this accident was just moved to the right shoulder. we're taking a live look from sky 9. southbound 95 here at 32. finally, traffic is moving well here. the big story of the morning at this point will be southbound 270, trying to get through germantown. i, of course, will keep you posted on that situation. if you're planning to head on the southbound side of 270, this is 95 at route 32. a couple of big problems in maryland coming up next, i'll update you on both of those at 6:12. back to you guys. >> thank you, monika. >> let's admit it. you have probably taken a phone call while driving or maybe even checked a text or e mail. >> now, the national transportation safety board wants every state to enact laws

aimed at stopping distracted driving but is it a good idea? >> surae chinn is live in bethesda with a story that affects every driver out there. good morning, surae. >> good morning. you are absolutely right, andrea. the first thing we do when we get behind the wheel for some of us is grab our cell phone. it is better yet to just leave it alone. but can you imagine not being able to use your bluetooth? well, the ntsb is now targeting that. this is the most comprehensive recommendation on bans that we've seen so far and this means all personal electronic devices. the only exception they say are for emergencies and your gps. >> that does apply to bluetooth, hand-held, hands free. it is both the visual and the cognitive distractions and the manual distractions we're concerned about. >> reporter: by the way, this that you're looking at is a powerful psa that has been running around the country.

through networks, showing people and their tragedy. a lot of these folks have either lost somebody or been involved in an accident because of text messaging. there is already a ban on texting in maryland, virginia, and d.c. but there is not a ban for the majority of us driving when it comes to your hands- free devices. there are exceptions to that such as bus drivers and new drivers. again, the ntsb is only making this as a recommendation. they don't have the authority to actually put this into law. they're hoping that states, individual states actually do put this into law. back to you, andrea. >> surae chinn reporting live from bethesda this morning. >> the future of the interstate 66 corridor inside the beltway is the focus of a meeting tonight in arlington. local lawmakers want to know what you think it should include from expanding the highway, bike lanes, metro and more. the meeting is tonight at 6:00 at the arlington county government office building.

that's at 2100 clarendon boulevard. >> major crime is down on metro compared to last year. the transit agency credits a new computer system and strategic patrolling. metro considers major crimes of things like larceny, robbery, assault and car theft. a report which also listed which stations had the most reports of these types of crimes. the worst on metro was the college park station on the green line. the worst in montgomery county was the bethesda station and in d.c., it is deanwood, northern virginia. it is vienna fairfax. ross ashley, the gunman who shot and killed a virginia tech police officer illegally purchased a handgun used in that shooting. ashley purchased a .40 caliber handgun in january. on thursday, the radford university student murdered a police officer, deriek crouse then committed suicide. investigators also say the men did not know each other. they're still trying to figure out a motive for the shooting. police in loudoun county, virginia, are looking for a

woman who is stealing from churches while sunday services are going on. this is the story you'll only see on channel 9. the thief hit this past sunday. one of her targets was sterling united methodist church. police say she took a wallet, keys and other things from the church office and someone even confronted her in the act. >> she's over there, rifling through the desk. and there is a person here. >> exactly. >> she still does it. >> exactly. >> he speaks to her. >> he speaks to her. and asks can i help you? and she says something like i'm just here leaving a note. >> reporter: and then left. >> and then left. >> the first church hit by this suspected robber is in herndon. police are reviewing surveillance tapes from that scene. the house plan to extend the payroll tax cut may make it to the other side of capitol hill but it is probably going to die there. that's because the republican- backed plan includes speeding up the controversial keystone excel pipeline. as tara mergener reports, all of us who will pay the

political price for political -- >> the house-approved republican legislation to extend a payroll tax cut and jobless benefits that expire at the end of the year. >> we've passed a large bill that contains many of the priorities of our caucus and the white house. we've worked to find common ground. >> now, the bill heads to the senate where democrats say it is dead on arrival. it includes a controversial oil pipeline project and asks too little of the wealthy. >> wasting time catering to the tea party folks over there when they should be working with us on a bipartisan package that can pass both houses. if congress doesn't reach a compromise, 160 million worker could see their paychecks shrink. the white house says lawmakers need to stay in washington until they reach a deal. >> there is simply no excuse for congress to leave on vacation until the american people know that they've been taken care of. >> to put pressure on the

negotiations, senate democrats are holding up a critical year- end spending bill. >> this isn't just irresponsible. it is reckless. >> reporter: if that bill doesn't clear congress this week, lawmakers will need another stop gap spending measure or risk a partial government shutdown. tara mergener for cbs news, washington. >> the senate will also vote on two balanced budget amendments today. both of those are expected to fail. well, uncle sam is going to stop making those dollar coins. vice president joe biden says 40% of them that are made each year wind up in storage because nobody wants to use them. the treasury department says the move will save $50 million a year. however, get this! dollar coins last a lot longer than the paper dollar bills and if we made the switch to using just the coins, the estimate is the government would save $5.6 billion over the next 30 years. >> i juster got them yesterday.

i use them. people look strangely. >> i don't get it. >> in five minutes, we're talking about protecting your ears. hearing loss isn't just a problem for seniors. we'll get advice for all ages. >> that's a fact in my house. >> howard says we're heading to the 50s today under partly sunny skies. however, showers will be rolling in. he'll tell you when. keep it here with 9news now.

we have partly to mostly cloudy skies. this morning. mostly cloudy today. high around 50 or so. maybe even a stray shower north and west. winds will be pretty light out of the southeast around 5 miles per hour. seven-day forecast looking toward the weekend in the next five. right now, here's monica. >> live look at 270. we've been telling you about this accident on the southbound side of 270 in germantown right after father hurley boulevard closer to route 118. it is a confirmed fatal accident. that means it is going to be there for awhile. maryland state police are on the scene. we'll give you all of the information as it comes in. we will also keep you posted on this situation coming up next

at 6:18. back to you guys. the penn state alleged abuse case will be back in the spotlight tomorrow. two administrators will be in court accused of failing to properly report the suspected abuse. the case is one of the stories making news now at 6:12. in a surprise move tuesday, former assistant football coach jerry sandusky waived his right to a pretrial hearing. he would have confronted the men accusing him of abuse. he is due back in court next month. >> police in liege, belgium, found a body of a woman in a home of a man who killed two people tuesday. the man lobbed grenades and opened fire in a square injuring more than 120. a diamond ring given to elizabeth taylor fetched $8.8 million, given to her by richard burton. an auction of the late actress's jewelry will continue online through saturday. do you spend your morning with headphones on listening to

your music? did you know that could be damaging to your hearing? also, the noisy toys coming around holiday time could be an issue for kids. here to talk about the growing problem with hearing is pam mason, the director of audiology at the american speech language hearing association which is based in rockville. good morning, thanks for joining us. >> thank you. >> big concern, holidays, lots of gifts. we all have the personal devices whether it is ipad, ipods, any other kind of gaming or video players you can use in the cars. there is some concern as far as hearing. why is that? >> well, many of the hand-held devices use earphones and many well-intended gift givers aren't aware of the damages some of the devices pose for hearing. if you listen to music, the devices are wonderful. digital, high fidelity and very convenient. you can carry them along with your music and listen for hours at a time. if you're listening at a level that exceeds 85 decibels, you could be potentially damaging

your hearing. so, gift givers need to know and people wearing the devices need to know limit the volume and limit the duration. >> 85 decibels sounds like an arbitrary number. can you test the device? >> you can test them but unfortunately, people don't typically do that. the volume control doesn't really tell you how loud you're listening. my advice is to roll back the volume to about 60% and then again, limit the number of hours you're listening. >> so, now as little ones are coming into play, they're hearing is, depending on how little they are, still developing. concern about injury. are there ways to safeguard your little ones, too? >> yes, even a small hearing loss in small children can have big negative consequences. and again, gift givers need to understand that there are toys designed for toddlers and young children that produce sounds that are damaging to hearing. the toy industry has a

voluntary guideline established but obviously there are toy manufacturers that don't follow these guidelines. the guidelines stipulate that the level of sound has to be 90 decibels or less at 10 inches. a kid's arm is about 10 inches. i don't see kids playing with their toys like this. they pull them close. cuddle. get down on the floor and play with their trucks. putting thir ear closer to the sound. it can be damaging. >> among our takeaways, limit the volume and limit the time especially for the little ones. >> that's correct. >> thanks, pam mason, audiologist. we appreciate your time this morning. >> over to you. >> we want to listen up to howard's forecast. it is going to be changing from cool to wet. >> yeah, we've got some wet weather mainly tomorrow. a couple of showers might just sneak in here west and north of us later today. but tomorrow is going to be the wetter day with scattered showers. and then more dry weather for another good weekend around here. >> i like that. >> nothing wrong with that.

here's a look at the bus stop forecast. not nearly as cold either as the last couple of mornings. only isolated for us. a lot of folks will not be scraping windshields this morning. that puts a lot of smiles on faces with most temps running from 34 to 44 over the next few hours. warmest temperature south and east of town with sunrise in about an hour. then today, plenty of clouds around. again, with that stray shower, temperatures by 11:00 in the low 40s. mid 40s to upper 40s at 1:00 winds will be light southeasterly at 5 miles per hour or less. 3:00 p.m., 48 with a high around 50. a drive home temperature still about 48 degrees. moisture has been out across the ohio valley during the overnight with some of the clouds now moving in. we become mostly cloudy. you'll notice in pennsylvania, approaching western maryland out of west virginia, we've got should showers headed there. that's what i'll be watching later this morning to see if any of that sneaks over toward the shenandoah valley, maybe even up toward frederick and hagerstown as we get throughout the later morning and the afternoon. temps are running as cold as 32

in great falls and manassas. 37 in rockville. also alexandria. to our east, andrews is 37 while baden is 35. columbia this morning sitting at 36 degrees. reagan national is checking in with 40. calm winds. the barometer holding steady at 30.41. temperatures are cold off to the north and east. even in new england, upper 30s in albany, boston and buffalo. then to the west, we're talking about milder air, memphis at 52. lexington, 47. and that's the air mass that will be moving in later on tonight and tomorrow so tomorrow will be a mild day. temperatures well in the 50s. the rain chances you'll see toward columbus and in toward west virginia, some of that again might sneak in here later but for the most part, we won't be seeing the effects of this weather system until tomorrow afternoon. here is your isolated shower later today. here's a look at the next three days where temperatures will be climbing toward the 50 degree mark this afternoon.

stray shower. tonight, we're back in the 30s and low 40s. tomorrow, upper 50s with scattered showers in the midday and the afternoon. then your weekend is chilly and dry with temps in the 40s. monika? >> well, unfortunately, we've had a very serious accident in germantown. we're going to take a live look here from 270 at route 118. maryland state police tell us a pedestrian was struck and killed by a car on the ramp to route 118, that's exit 15. sky 9 has been trying to get a gauge of what's going on here. here's the activity southbound 270 at route 118 causing major back-ups. let me first take you to a map and show you exactly where it is and then show you the back- up on i-270. southbound 270 in germantown, you want to go ahead and use an alternate route. route 355 will be the best bet. let's take a look at the back- up on 270 trying to get down toward 118 from father hurley boulevard. of course, this is growing quickly. we'll take a live look at route

350. so, your best bet is going to be to go ahead and take this route. you can either get off at 121 or a little further south as well at father hurley boulevard. i would suggest you get off early if you can off of 270. i'll keep you posted on this situation at 6:25 once again. back to you guys. >> thank you, monika. time for one of our favorite parts of the morning! we check out the morning lights. all month long, we share your holiday displays on tv. >> we're going to the oak hill section of herndon, virginia. we have enchanted christmas here. marie and her husband, tom, have been doing this for 18 years. each of the trees in their yard has a display, santa, reindeer, flying snowmen and even a 14- foot tall rotating christmas pyramid. quite an impressive job, potters! thank you. >> people, step it up. we want to see even more. we appreciate you sending your pictures and e-mails and your videos. send it to this address, lights at web -- lights at wusa9.com.

please include your name and where you live because we love showcasing your lights. >> next in sports, hear from dale hunter on his relationship with alexander ovechkin plus horse history made in maryland. >> seven out of ten of us plan to do this, one of these things every weekend. is it a, go to a movie. b, catch up on some sleep or c, check your work e. mails. >> that could be the real answer. we like how facebook friend liz thinks. b is her answer. but that's not how our bodies work. you know you can never catch up on sleep but it is sure is nice to try. we'll answer the question coming at 6:53.

howard here with your weather first on this mostly cloudy wednesday morning. grab the umbrella just to be case. maybe a stray shower up in the shenandoah valley later this morning into the afternoon.

but i think our better chances of rain hold off until thursday. here is a look at the day planner. plenty of clouds around today. temperatures, they're comfortable this morning. a lot warmer than they have been. 45 at noon. upper 40s to low 50s for highs in spots. light wind out of the south to southeast. at 5 miles per hour. mike? >> thank you, howard. this morning, the capitals find themselves somewhere they haven't been in awhile. third place. >> they have fallen behind florida and winnipeg in the southeast division standings. caps hosted the flyers. philadelphia exploded for three goals over ten minutes in the second period. talbot gave the visitors a 4-0 lead. caps scored once. capitals lose 5-1. it is d.c.'s first regulation loss to philly in ten games. owe our kristen berset sat down with the capitals new coach and asked dale hunter about his relationship with the superstar, alexander ovechkin after his reported rocky

relationship with bruce boudreau. >> it is good. he had ten hits one game, seven hits. he's a different player. usually goal scorers don't play so physical. but he does. that's what makes him a special player. >> since hunter took over the team last month, the caps have gone 3-4. today, we'll find out if the nationals really are serious about signing japanese pitcher darvish. the deadline is 5:00 tonight. they make blind offers. his japanese team says they'll take the highest bid. that's just to buy the rights to negotiate with him, not to sign him. the 25-year-old darvish is seen as japan's top young pitchers. >> check out this record setting horse. his name is rapid redux. he won yesterday at laurel park in maryland. his 19th consecutive victory which tied the record set by citation in 1948. horses trainers considering retiring the animal at the end of the year.

coming up on 6:26, the traffic change coming to tysons corner today. but don't worry, this is a good thing. >> occupy d.c. protestors have been in mcpherson square for two months. learn who is saying now it is time for them to go. >> right now, monika has a quick check on traffic. including this, monika. >> the big story of the morning, andrea. southbound 270, a serious accident here at route 118 in germantown. if you're planning to head southbound 270, i'll keep you posted on this situation and what you need to do to get around it. coming up in my next report. you're watching 9news now. stay with us.

we're back at 6:30 and we're following breaking news out of germantown, maryland. sky 19 live over southbound 270, the exit there. the pedestrian was struck and killed in some sort of accident. this happened about 45 minutes ago. the investigation is still going on right now. and the back-ups on southbound 270 are stretching back to route 121 right now. in a moment, monika will have some advice on how to get around this. >> thank you for starting your day with us. i'm andrea roane. >> i'm mike hydeck. meteorologist howard bernstein is live on the weather terrace this morning. little chilly but nothing like yesterday. good morning, howard. >> earmuffs not even with me this morning as temperatures a lot warmer. remember yesterday morning, we had temps in the treens. this morning, we're in the 30s, even low 40s. we can handle this stuff pretty

reisly. here's a look at the day planner. lots of clouds around today. mid-40s at noon. upper 40s at 5:00. highs from the upper 40s to low 50s. better chance of the low 50s will be south of washington where it is always just a little bit warmer. we look at the satellite and radar through columbus approaching areas in southwest pennsylvania, rain, some of the showers could sneak into western and northern areas later into the afternoon with 30s right now places like luray at 38. 37 in culpepper. manassas the cold spot at 32. we sit at 40 with highs this afternoon again around 50 in town. perhaps low 50s in cambridge and fredericksburg. monika samtani is in with an update on what's going on up in montgomery county. >> we're going to take a live look at the southbound side of i-270. the accident has been here since about 5:45 this morning. a pedestrian was struck and killed at the exit for route 118. again, about 45 minutes ago. in the meantime, state police have the exit ramp blocked off. we'll take a live look from sky

9 at the delay. beginning at least clarksburg heading southbound on 270 although you can get through here, you cannot exit at route 118 as you can see. it is causing major problems here. i have a feeling it is going to be here for awhile with a cleanup and investigation. in the meantime, need to choose your alternate routes. let's take a look at a map. route 355 on the east side of 270, that's a good idea. on the west side of 270, take 121 to clopper road or 109 to barnsville to get around the accident. just avoid 270. you saw the delay. it is not good at this time. let's take a look at the beltway at university boulevard. normal slow traffic from 95 into silver spring. no problems to report here. coming up in my next report, i'll update you on the accident on 270 at 6:46. andrea, back to you. er >> that ramp connects westbound

route 7 with southbound 123. it has been closed since last september. where 7 and 123 meet is the actual tysons corner dating back to the area's days as a rural crossroads. >> president obama will be heading to fort bragg, north carolina today. >> he'll speak with troops who are just home from iraq and the president says the war there is just about over. >> the remaining military forces in iraq are getting ready to leave. it has been nine years since the military action started there. the president says history will be the judge whether or not the war was worth the cause. both in lives and financially. both president obama and former vice president dick cheney say it is time for iraq to handle things on its own. >> we've given the iraqis an opportunity to have a democracy and to be successful. it is now time for us to bring all of our troops home. >> they've got a democracy established. it is not perfect by any means.

there a lot of work to be done but they've clearly much better off than when saddam hussein was in charge. >> now, both the bush and obama administrations wanted some u.s. troops to stay behind for security. iraq said no. >> you know talking on your cell phone or texting while driving is a bad idea. but a lot of us still do it. and that's why the federal government wants every state to ban it. surae chinn is live in bethesda with more on this plan. >> well, there are two exceptions the ntsb says that those are emergencies and using your gps. can you imagine not being able to use your bluetooth device? well, that's exactly what the ntsb is saying, that is off- limits. they're saying all personal, electronic devices are off- limits in this ban. they say no e-mail, cell phone calls, texting, updates, any of that is not worth a human life. and people have something to say about it. >> i really do think it is

distracting. i'm distracted enough as i drive. >> i think it is too much. i don't think that -- how are you going to enforce it to begin with? >> what we're concerned about is the enforceability of this law. if it were to become law. if the public will is not there, it won't be enforceable. >> i would tell you that 50 years ago, people said drunk driving couldn't be enforced either. we had people who said seat belts couldn't be enforced. cops are smart people. i'm confident it can be enforced. >> investigators point to this chain reaction pileup in missouri that prompted the ntsb for this recommended ban. a 19-year-old sent 11 text messages in 11 minutes before slamming into a truck that caused two school buses to collide. he and another teen were killed along with 38 people who were injured. a lot of folks use this time during their commute to do their work, make important phone calls, they're going to have to find another way if

this actually does become law in every state. back to you. >> all right, surae chinn, safely on the side of the road with that report live in bethesda this morning. well, as you can imagine, the plan has a lot of you talking on our facebook page. here is a sample of your comments. deejay richard asks why is this even a debate? the only thing you should be doing while driving is driving. >> michelle white thinks a new law is a good idea but says good luck enforcing it. i'm all for eliminating distractive driving but how will you enforce it? and then there's this comment from sara o'connor. she posts are they going to ban children in cars? they certainly can be a distraction. what about other adult passengers? what about looking down to change the radio station? this is ridiculous! well, you join the conversation now. just visit our facebook page at facebook.com/wusa9. if you see marines and first responders rushing to nationals park today later, do not freak out.

they're holding a disaster drill at the stadium today. the exercise will help show how the group's response to a major terrorist attack. d.c.'s fire department and the u.s. marines terrorist response unit are conducting the exercise. it is expected to start at 10:00 this morning and run until 2:00 this afternoon. >> the leading house republican wants to know why the park service has let occupy protestors snay mcpherson square as long as they have. california congressman darrell issa says the park underwent a $400,000 renovation recently and that money came from stimulus funds. he says the protestors camped out there have now destroyed the grounds. camping is prohibited on the square. the park service says it is making sure though the occupy protests are safe and legal. virginia's first lady and the officer's wives clubs are teaming up to spread some holiday cheer to our fighting men and women. the home-baked cookies will go to nearly 1,000 single soldiers living at fort belvoir. virginia first lady marine

mcdonald wants to give our service members a taste of home as a gesture of appreciation. >> i'm here to support the troops. i have a program called sos, serving our service member families. they're doing a wonderful gathering of cookies for our single troops. >> in the past, the group collected more than 100 pounds of cookies to give to soldiers. >> 6:38. big changes coming to driver's ed classes in virginia. in nine minutes, the new plan on trying to keep young drivers safe on the road. >> howard says we'll get into the 50s today under partly sunny skies but some rain is on the horizon. your weather first is next right here on 9news now. [ female announcer ] more people are using wireless devices...

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life is so much fun to have a french accent. i just had a croissant during the commercial break. it was fantastic. >> weather first here. guys, look at this. take a second and look at your picture there. the capitol. the capitol may be blurred but we'll focus on the little sliver of red -- orange on the left side. some breaks in the mostly cloudy skies. a gorgeous sunrise coming up nonetheless, at least at the moment it is gorgeous. maybe the sunrise won't be as pretty. >> remember that and then let's go back to it later on and see how it changes. >> pretty decent day ahead. >> might see a shower north and west of town. moisture out to the ohio valley. it is going to stream in a little bit closer us to. today at the bus stop, no problems. in fact, milder. lot more comfortable than it has been the last couple of mornings at temps running in the 30s and even low 40s throughout. winds are nice and light.

little over half hour from now at 7:18, one of the later sunrises as the solstice is next week. couple of sunny breaks. more clouds than anything. we'll see temperatures by midday into the middle 40s. light winds out of the southeast at 3 miles per hour. as we head toward this afternoon, upper 40s to near 50. arguably could add a raindrop there. we may see a sprinkle or two. by 8:00, we're back in the mid- 40s. another night where we'll be in the 30s and 40s. relatively mild, especially for this time of year. look at the moisture though that we're concerned about for later. columbus coming in north of charleston. this rain tracking in the next few hours, the parts of the shenandoah valley. western maryland. might even sneak up toward frederick this afternoon. 34 in gaithersburg though. yesterday, frederick was 19. 18 degrees in the morning. winchester is in the 30s. also in the teens in martinsburg. to the east, across the bay, about the same.

34 degrees. we're at reagan national. 40. cloudy skies. the winds are calm. even though we had some breaks in the clouds. when the sky covers 90% or more, meteorologically, that's considered overcast all of the moisture from the central part of the country. jet stream diving in. you've got the rain coming through the central plains up through chicago through columbus. this is what we're going to have to watch for later today. any of this manage to make it over the mountains. a little of it might now. but the better chance of showers will actually be tomorrow. as a front out to the west moves in our direction. so, we watch the rain this morning. here we are at noon. shenandoah valley. western maryland with some showers. and might see one or two later on. then it is really this stuff out to the west. right here, this is going to get here tomorrow in the middle of the day. the forecast then today, we've got highs around 50. might see a stray shower north and west. tonight, back in the 30s and 40s. tonight, upper 50s with a better chance of showers. friday, clearing out, 50

degrees. we'll call it partly sunny. the weekend, it looks dry but chilly with highs in the mid- 40s. monika samtani, 6:45. it has been a rough morning for some. >> at least for an hour now, the southbound side of i-270, maryland state police have been on the scene of this accident. you're looking at it live from sky 9, southbound 270 here at route 118 in germantown. the right side of the roadway remains blocked. this was a fatal accident involving a pedestrian and when this kind of thing happens, you know that the reconstruction and the investigation takes awhile. you've already got back-ups beginning all the way back in clarksburg heading southbound on i-270. we'll take a look at a map so i can give you an idea of where it is and what you can do. you can use route 121 as your alternates. avoid 270 if you can. 355 still running fairly well but expect that to be slowing down on the east side of i-270 as well. live look at 270 a little further south from the accident. here's what it looks like at

shady grove road. there are no problems once you're beyond germantown into gaithersburg. down to the point where the lanes divide, you'll be ok. you've got your normal slow traffic. we'll take a live look at new hampshire avenue. no problems to report as you leave 95 heading to georgia avenue. you'll just be on the brakes. you're used to that. 270 will be the big story this morning. i'll keep you posted. before that, this week, a new driver's ed curriculum was introduced to schools in virginia. it is designed to help teen drivers make safe decisions when driving around large trucks. joining me today to talk about the program is janet brooking, executive director of drive smart virginia. thank you so much for being with us. >> thank you. >> most of us think that it is the trucks that cause the crashes but i would say what, 3/4 of fatal accidents involving large trucks actually involve the other vehicle. so, what are some of the main safety points you're trying to teach in the new curriculum? >> one of the most important things is teens need understand that there are no zones in and

around the trucks where the trucks cannot see the vehicles around them so we want to teach that to the teens. we need for them to understand that trucks -- the stopping distance is 40% greater for trucks. there are all sorts of things that are tips just like that that we're teaching in this curriculum. >> especially for inexperienced drivers. we're talking about young drivers. we're going to put up a full screen. i know that -- what i found interesting about this program is that you not only talk about those safety points but also general information about trucks. in terms of the types of trucks. you can see if you can explain to us what those are. those safety points. >> the ones right here. the road signs, the blind spots, passing, turning. these are all things that you have within the curriculum with pictures as well. >> right. absolutely. what we understand is that not only teens but adults, everybody, doesn't understand -- people don't understand the specific signs, what the signage means in and around dealing with trucks. so, part of that curriculum

also educates on what the signs mean and what they mean to you as a passenger vehicle. >> you partnered with virginia department of education, state police, virginia trucking association. is this going to be mandatory in virginia schools at some point? >> yes. it is a mandatory curriculum. the virginia department of education feels very strongly that it should be delivered to all 100,000 drivers education students that go through the curriculum and through the program every year. so, it is a significant captive audience for us to have. >> any comment on the ntsb and their plan to ban cell phones and distracted driving? >> absolutely. we're delighted that they're taking this strong stand. we very much agree with what they're saying and we would like to see that happen in virginia. >> let's see if that happens. thank you very much. you know, i read that over half a million truck crashes a year occur in the u.s. but this is a very important safety program and thank you for being with us today. >> thank you. >> at 6:49 now, a check on the

news before you go is next here on 9news now. stay with us.

there could be a stray shower or two this afternoon. especially west and northwest of d.c. shenandoah valley. up in western maryland, even up toward frederick. high today around 50. andrea? >> thank you, howard. today is wednesday, december 14th. here is a check on the news before you go. an investigation will get underway today into this barn fire. it is a an historic barn in leesburg, virginia. fortunately no people or animals were hurt. no estimate yet on a cost to rebuild the barn. >> the ceo of marriott is stepping down. bill marriott jr. has led the company which bears his name for more than three decades.

he's not retiring. he'll become chief executive chairman of the marriott hotel chain. the d.c. taxicab commission has approved a fare hike. no word when it will take effect. you'll still pay $3 to start the ride but instead of $1.50 a mile, it will soon be $2.16 a mile. the fuel surcharge and extra passenger fees will be dropped. time to answer our question of the morning. this was the question. seven out of ten of us plan to do this every weekend. is it a, go to a movie. b, catch up on sleep or c, check your work e-mails. >> i figured it might be there. the answer is c. we plan to check the work e-mails. maybe we don't actually do it. we plan to do it. >> plan is the keyword. >> i plan it and sometimes i execute the plan. >> not always. >> one more check on traffic and weather when 9news now returns.

one more thing today. saw this on facebook. it happened in october coming out of alaska. there was a posting there, the second chance ranch out of washington state. this guy was out fishing in a 62-foot boat. he's out there and he sees four deer out in the water! look at this picture right now. stop and look at it. the deer are swimming around the boat. he realizes they're in distress. there they are resting. that's how tired they were from the cold water swimming. you don't know if there were more than four when they stopped. they got to shore and they left except for the one last one. he needed a little producting to get off the boat. he was really, really tired but they ran into the forest. the three of them. >> happy to be back on terra firma. >> i thought they went two by

two. >> good they rescued them. >> that's a fish story. the guy has pictures to prove it it. er 50 tomorrow. better chance of showers upper 50s. we'll dry out and get chilly for your weekend highs in the 40s. >> we've been telling you about an accident involving a fatal pedestrian accident, southbound on i-270, here's what it looks like from sky 9. they're letting you get through. delays in clarksburg. let's take a look from the mdot camera, southbound i-270, go ahead and use route 355 or use clopper road, great seneca highway, route 121. lots of options on the west side of 270. quick look into virginia. no problems to report on 395. >> "the early show" is next. 9news now favors nick sparks about his book that will be made into a