Unsafe driving situation - windshield wipers

I don’t usually drive at night and rarely in the dark while it is raining, but the other night I was.  Once on the road, it became apparent my windshield wipers were not up to the task.  I couldn’t see with them in motion.  I could only see well enough to drive with them off.  I realized this was a very unsafe situation. I did not have any good options for being safe at the time.  There was no place to pull off the road and it was not a safe area to be off the road by myself.  I wasn’t going far so I decided to continue where I was headed and either wait for the rain to stop or inspect my wipers for further action I could take to get back home. Luckily, it stopped raining before I had to drive again.  

I figured this experience had some discussions points for safety.

·         Was there a safer option than continuing to drive?

·         Vehicle inspections are not complete unless you account for all weather situations.

Actions taken

At next opportunity, I purchased a new blade and replaced the one on the car.  This too came with a safety discussion point.  In the past, I probably would have selected one of the cheaper blades when it was time to replace them, but after experiencing an extreme situation I decided to take a little extra time to evaluate the otherwise simple purchase for product quality and specifications.  I went with a higher quality than I would have previously.