NY Thruway issues commercial vehicle ban ahead of snowstorm

Victoria E. Freile, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
·2 min read

Commercial vehicles have been banned from using the western portion of the New York state Thruway in response to the several feet of lake effect snow expected to fall this week in western New York.

According to Thruway officials, the ban went into effect 6 a.m. Wednesday morning on Interstate 90 stretches from Exit 46 near Rochester (at Interstate 390) to the Pennsylvania state line, until further notice. The ban applies to commercial vehicles traveling in both directions.

A lake effect snow warning for Genesee, Wyoming and Erie counties is underway through 7 p.m. Thursday, according to the National Weather Service in Buffalo.

Between 1 and 3 feet of lake effect snow are expected to fall in the most persistent lake effect snow bands, with much of the area expected to see 1 to 2 feet of snow, according to the Weather Service. The pending lake effect snow is again expected to pummel the Buffalo area, where more than 2 feet of snow fell over the weekend in blustery conditions. Communities in far western Monroe County could see 2 to 3 inches of snow as part of this storm, forecasters said.

Snow is expected to fall at a rate of up to 2 to 4 inches per hour Wednesday morning through early afternoon, forecasters said.

The band is expected to weaken a bit in the afternoon, with snow falling at a rate of 1 to 3 inches per hour, before the lake effect snow again intensifies south of Buffalo Wednesday evening, according to the Weather Service.

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Rochester NY Weather: NY Thruway issues ban ahead of snowstorm