The long, tedious process of running in and out of the house to check if the amount of snow on the roads will constitute a no-school day just got a whole lot easier.

The Montgomery County Department of Transportation released an online mapping tool Dec. 13 that informs residents about road conditions during and after snowfall.

The map, which cost about $165,000 to create, covers all county-maintained roads, including highways and neighborhood streets, Department of Transportation’s Keith Compton said.

“After last season, we realized that we need to provide the community with more information,” Compton said. “Folks can now make an informed decision about whether or not to leave their house during snow.”

The site features a zoom function so residents can focus on their neighborhood and surrounding streets, as well as an entire trip route. The site also has a street view option from any of the county’s traffic cameras and a way for residents to report intersections in need of sand or salt, roads that street plows missed or damaged mailboxes.

“The new tool will make things a lot more efficient because people won’t waste time sitting at home when they know they can go out to run errands or other work,” parent Ratna Sahay said. “It’ll eliminate the guessing game and make any risks clear.”

The Department of Transportation has also started to use different media outlets like YouTube, Twitter, and the county’s television channel, County Cable Six, to provide reliable and timely information, Compton said.

The site is located at http://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/snowmap/.