WASHINGTON — The nation’s capital is bracing for its first major snowstorm since a fast-moving storm in January 2011 that left some people stuck in traffic for 8 hours or more.

Since then, the federal government has changed its bad-weather policies to allow workers to leave their offices sooner or to work from home if major storms are expected.

The U.S. Office of Personnel Management, which sets leave policies for 300,000 federal workers, is monitoring the forecasts for Tuesday and Wednesday but has not indicated when it plans to make an announcement. OPM was criticized after the 2011 storm for waiting too long to tell workers to go home, leading to gridlock.

A spokesman for D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray says the mayor will make a decision Tuesday night about local government employees.

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