The National Weather Service has downgraded its snowfall forecast to 4-8 inches Wednesday, but a travel ban imposed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo remains in effect.
Snowfall of as much as 18 to 24 inches previously had been predicted in Eastern New York.
Maximum snowfall rates are now predicted to be up to 1 inch per hour, down from a previous projection of as much as 3 inches per hour.
The snow is expected to taper off Tuesday night.
A winter weather advisory is in effect until 1 a.m. Wednesday. The winter storm warning that had been issued has been canceled.
The National Weather Service still cautions of dangerous travel conditions due to snow-cvered roadways and localized blowing snow. Winds are expected to be out of the north at 10 to 15 mph, with gusts up to 30 mph.
Cuomo banned driving in 13 counties on Monday, including Ulster and Dutchess, and Mid-Hudson leaders urged extreme caution as a winter storm moved into the Northeast.
Cuomo announced the ban about 5 p.m. Monday, as snow already was falling. The ban went into effect at 11 p.m. in Ulster, Dutchess, Orange, Bronx, Kings, Nassau, New York, Putnam, Queens, Richmond, Rockland, Suffolk and Westchester counties.
Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro opted for an even earlier ban, prohibiting driving in the county as of 9 p.m.
Cuomo said only emergency personnel would be allowed on roads during the ban. Anyone else caught driving could be fined up to $300, he said.
The governor said the ban was a safety precaution to avoid the risk of people getting stranded in their vehicles in the snow.
There was no immediate word on when the bans might be lifted.
Earlier Monday, during a press conference at the Ulster County Public Works garage in Kingston, County Executive Michael Hein urged people to “stay off the roads” during the storm and take “common-sense approaches when it comes to emergency preparedness.”
The National Weather Service was predicting snowfall of 10 to 20 inches in much of Ulster County and Northern Dutchess and perhaps 2 feet in eastern and southern Dutchess County by the time the storm winds down Tuesday afternoon.
Both counties were under a “winter storm warning,” and Orange County was under a “blizzard warning,” as were many coastal areas in the Northeast. Most schools in the Hudson Valley dismissed students early Monday in anticipation of the storm, and Ulster County Area Transit suspended bus service at 6 p.m. Monday.
In announcing the driving ban, Cuomo reflected on previous snowstorms in which drivers were stranded in their vehicles for more than 24 hours.
“We learned the lesson the hard way,” he said. “We’d rather be safe than sorry. … It is already very, very difficult out there.”
In the city of Kingston, a “snow emergency,” under which on-street parking is banned, was put into effect at 4 p.m. Monday and was to remain for 48 hours. Cars parked on city streets, other than roads those specifically designated for single-side parking during the emergency, are subject to being ticketed and towed.
The city’s municipal lots will be open for parking throughout the emergency period.
The city also announced there would be no trash and recycling pickup Tuesday.
“The heaviest snowfall is going to be late tonight [Monday] through the first part of tomorrow,” said Vasil Kloeci, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Albany.
The storm was expected to gain intensity between 10 and 11 p.m. Monday, with snowfall totals of between 2 and 3 inches an hour at times and winds of up to 30 mph that could cause drifts.
Temperatures will be cold, with readings hovering in the teens and low 20s for the most of the storm, Kloeci said.
Hein said Ulster County’s warming center at the Clinton Avenue Methodist Church in Kingston had been opened, and he urged anyone who finds themselves in the cold to use the service.
Molinaro said the Dutchess County Senior Friendship Centers would be closed Tuesday and home-delivered meals that normally would be delivered were to be brought to recipients on Monday instead.
Ulster County Sheriff Paul Van Blarcum said deputies were in a “reactive” mode, prepared to respond to any emergencies that arise during the storm.
Van Blarcum said the Sheriff’s Office has 25 four-wheel-drive vehicles, a Humvee and four all-terrain vehicles at the ready to respond to emergencies or assist those who find themselves in a dangerous situation.
Both Molinaro and Hein said road crews in their counties were geared up for the storm and that sand and salt supplies were adequate to handle the weather.
“Although there have been storms, it hasn’t been so overwhelming that it’s blown through the budget or the products we have in stock,” Hein said.
Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corp. Spokesman John Maserjian said 50 linemen from Chicago have arrived to help the local utility handle any storm-related emergencies.
He said those linemen will supplement the utility’s own 65 two-man crews.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
