State Police are responding to a number of crashes across greater Boston and beyond this morning as a snowstorm blankets the state, dumping up to 2 inches of snow per hours in some communities.
Thousands of snowplows are operating statewide and in Boston in response to the storm. Governor Deval Patrick ordered nonessential workers to stay home while dozens of school systems closed, including Boston’s.
State Police Lieutenant Daniel Richard said troopers were responding to “a bunch” of car crashes all over the state, but none, so far, had caused any serious injury.
“The entire Commonwealth is affected negatively by the snow,” said Richard, who said he did not know exactly how many crashes there were this morning, but that many were related directly to the snow and road conditions.
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Speeds on the Massachusetts Turnpike were lowered to 40 miles per hour from the New York border to Boston
The snow is predicted to taper off later today, after dumping up to 10 inches of snow in Boston and about a foot in the northwest corner of the state, forecasters said.
“The snow will keep going through the afternoon commute, and it won’t take long to pile up,” National Weather Service meteorologist Alan Dunham said this morning.
Snowfall totals are expected to be lower in Southeastern Massachusetts, where the snow will change over to sleet and rain later today, the weather service said.
As of mid-morning, snowfalls of 6 inches or more were being reported in Essex, Hampden, Hampshire, Middlesex, and Worcester counties, according to the National Weather Service. Southbridge led the state with 9 inches on the ground as of 9:30 a.m. Chelsea, adjacent to Boston, reported 4.2 inches of snow.
The state Department of Transportation reported it had 3,402 snowplows operating on state roads across Massachusetts. Boston has deployed some 500 crews.
Patrick announced his decision to order nonessential state employees to stay at home on his official Twitter account around 5:30 a.m. “Due to poor weather conditions, non-emergency state employees working in Executive Branch agencies should not report to work today,’’ he wrote.
Shortly before 6 a.m., the state’s Trial Court announced that all courthouses would be closed today.
Boston City Hall, however, is to operate on a normal schedule, according to the city’s website.
Transportation Secretary Richard Davey said Logan International Airport is open, but that some 30 percent of flights have been canceled by airlines. He urged travelers to check with their airline before heading to the airport.
Delays and cancellations are being reported on some MBTA commuter rail lines, and buses are being deployed on the Red Line’s Ashmont trolley line, according to the T’s service alert website. Multiple bus routes are being delayed or changing to snow routes this morning, the T reported.
The challenge facing snow plow drivers in greater Boston is the morning commute, given the timing of the storm, Davey said in a telephone interview.
In Boston and many other communities, snow emergencies have been declared. Parking will not be allowed on most major streets in Boston during the ban. A list of the streets affected by the ban — and alternative parking areas — can be found on the city’s website.
On smaller streets, cars must be parked no more than 1 foot from the curb and at least 20 feet from an intersection.
Weather service meteorologist Matt Doody said the storm is bringing heavy wet snow in contrast to the puffy powder generated by earlier storms this season.
“It’s not like some of the storms we’ve already had where you could quite literally pretty much blow it off your car,’’ Doody said.
Doody also said that temperatures will remain below freezing after the storm passes, but temperatures won’t drop into the arctic cold the region has confronted in recent weeks.
The end of the workweek will be dry and sunny, with highs in the upper 20s through Saturday. Some additional snow could fall between Sunday night and Monday, but those forecasts aren’t definite.
“There’s too much muddled discrepancy to give even a reasonable prediction,” Dunham said.
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