Ice and snow disrupt travel in Ontario Thursday, eyes on a bigger weekend storm
A blast of freezing rain and snow could make for slower commute times across parts of Ontario on Thursday. Eyes on a bigger snow maker for the weekend, next.
You'll want to pack your patience on Thursday, as a messy mix of ice and snow will impact travel across parts of Ontario.
Several school buses were pulled from the roads early in the day because of the deteriorating conditions. Some schools opted to close their doors, as well.
This will be a quick moving system, with the worst of the impacts hitting through the first half of the day across the south.
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Attention then turns to a brewing weekend system, which could bring some of the most significant snowfall totals of the season so far to southern sections of the province.
Always stay up-to-date with the latest weather alerts in your area, and be sure to check highway conditions before heading out.
Blast of freezing rain and snow Thursday
Thursday's icy mix is part of a much bigger stateside system, which is bringing freezing rain and significant ice accretion to areas south of the border.
Freezing drizzle prompted advisories across southwestern Ontario early Thursday, with light ice build-up and slippery conditions expected. Those advisories expanded across much of the south for the morning commute.
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"Surfaces such as highways, roads, walkways and parking lots may become icy and slippery. Freezing drizzle can produce thin, hard-to-detect layers of ice," said Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) in the advisory. "Take extra care when walking or driving in affected areas."
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Ice pellets will also mix with snow at times across the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), along the 401, and into the traditional snowbelt regions.
Only a few centimetres of snow is forecast throughout the duration of the event, with travel troubles likely to ease in time for the afternoon and evening commutes.
It could be a different story for the drive home in eastern Ontario however, with 5-10 cm of snow expected into the evening hours.
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First 10+ cm of the season this weekend?
Beyond that, fair and colder conditions are forecast for Friday.
Eyes then turn to a Colorado low, which is expected to track just south of the region on Saturday night. This system will have slightly more moisture, which can lead to higher snowfall amounts than Thursday's system.
This system will bring widespread snow, but we can’t completely rule out some ice pellets near Lake Erie, as well. Snow totals of 8-15 cm are expected across most of the region, though with some uncertainty with the track and exact amounts.
For many places outside of the lake-effect snowbelts, this will be the first 10+ cm snowfall of the season if this pans out.
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Next week will be very cold, with colder-than-normal temperatures dominating through mid-February and late February. The overall pattern will continue to be active, but it is too early to know if that will mean substantial snow for southern Ontario, or if the storm track will be too far south of the region at times. However, the pattern appears to be favourable for a couple of significant snowfalls during mid-month.
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Stay tuned to The Weather Network for the latest forecast updates for Ontario.