WASHINGTON — D.C. police officers, sworn to protect and serve, are working to help clear snow from city streets.

“It’s been very efficient,” Police Chief Cathy Lanier observes. “And there’s a lot of snow out there.”

The V.I.P. motorcades include police escorts and officers that block streets to traffic, allowing front-end loaders and dump trucks to haul away snow.

“The officers go in, they close down the block that’s needed,” Lanier says. “The dumps will go in with the convoy of trucks. They have the front-end loaders, and they load the snow and [then] they all move out together.”

Lanier knows blocking streets for 10 to 15 minutes at a time can add up to drivers experiencing painfully long and frustrating commutes.

“But the important thing is, we have got to get the snow out of there,” Lanier exclaims.

As more progress is made to ease choke points and remove the largest snow mounds from local roads, officers will resume more typical duties.

“We’re going to start transitioning that over to the Department of Transportation (DDOT), traffic control aides and the rope units from DDOT,” Lanier says.