Winter Storm Travel Restrictions, Warnings, Road Closures
At 9:30 in the morning, a stop-travel order was issued for the whole of Erie County. Additionally, the city of Niagara Falls is under a travel prohibition at this time as well.
In preparation for the winter storm that is expected to strike the region this coming weekend, many states of emergency have been declared, and additional precautions are also being taken to keep people safe and keep cars off the roads.
The New York State Thruway (I-90) has been shut down to ALL traffic between Exit 46 in Rochester and the state line between New York and Pennsylvania. The portion of the Interstate 190 that runs from the Interstate 90 to exit 22 (Route 62) is likewise blocked until further notice.
On Friday morning at 9:30, all of Erie County was placed under a travel restriction until further notice. This indicates that no one, other than workers who are absolutely necessary, should be on the roads at any time. As the wind and snow rolled in, the visibility on the roads swiftly worsened, as did the road conditions.
A travel restriction has been imposed for the whole of Niagara County, and it will begin to take effect on Friday at the stroke of two in the afternoon.
On Saturday night, the sheriff of Niagara County, Michael Filicetti, and the director of emergency services for Niagara County, Jonathan Schultz, said that zones would be formed as soon as they were able to start taking automobiles to tow yards. People may acquire further information about where automobiles were taken by calling the dispatch line at 716-438-4394. A record will be maintained of where vehicles were transported.
A travel restriction and a state of emergency were both announced by Genesee County about the same time on Friday afternoon.
Not long after that, Orleans County similarly declared a state of emergency and put a restriction on all travel.
In addition, the city of Buffalo enacted a driving prohibition that went into effect on Friday at 9:30 in the morning.
Along with the declaration of a state of emergency, the City of North Tonawanda also immediately instituted a moratorium on all outbound and incoming traffic. The declaration of a state of emergency will be in force until the morning of December 25 at 10 o’clock.
A state of emergency has also been declared in the City of Tonawanda, and a travel restriction has been implemented. The First Methodist Church, which can be found at 207 Grove Street, now serves as a warming center for the community. You may get further details about the shelters that are open to the public here.
At around 10 in the morning, the City of Niagara Falls announced a travel restriction. It will continue to be in effect until we get additional notification.
On Friday morning, the Community of Orchard Park made an announcement that a state of emergency will be declared for the village at 6 p.m. on Friday, and that travel would be prohibited. These will continue to be in force until we get additional instruction.
A travel prohibition was issued by the Village of Lancaster, and it went into force at 9:30 in the morning.
A travel restriction will be in effect until December 25 due to the ongoing State of Emergency that has been declared for the Town of Evans.
A state of emergency was also declared by the city of Lackawant to, and it went into force on Friday at seven in the morning.
As of ten in the morning on Friday, a travel advisory had been issued for Wyoming County.
At two o’clock on Saturday afternoon, a travel advisory that had been issued for the whole of Chautauqua County was withdrawn. A declaration of a state of emergency has been made in effect for the county until Monday.
In preparation for the impending snowstorm, a number of roadways in Western New York were shut down.
On Friday morning around six o’clock, NITTEC began posting notifications that some portions of Route 400, Route 218, Interstate 290, Interstate 190, and Route 5 were blocked.
Because of the winter weather, Route 400 is blocked from Olean Road in Aurora all the way to Interstate 90 in West Seneca.
The closure of Route 219 begins at Peters Road in Ashford and continues all the way to Interstate 90 in West Seneca.
There is a closure on Interstate 290 between Exits I-190 in Tonawanda and I-90 in Amherst.
The closure of Interstate 190 begins at Niagara Falls at Exit 21 (Niagara Scenic Parkway) and continues all the way to Lewiston at Exit 25 (Upper Mountain).
The section of Route 5 between Big Tree Road and Interstate 190 is now blocked.
There is a prohibition on the use of commercial vehicles on the Thruway in Western New York. On Friday morning at six o’clock, it went into effect, and it will continue to be in force until further notice.