Snow on Friday: Up to 20 cm expected in parts of B.C.

Snow is hitting the B.C. South Coast on Friday and some areas are going to receive up to 20 centimetres before the day has ended.

Environment Canada has issued a snowfall warning for the day with snow now coming down heavy in many areas.

The snowfall warning is in place for:

• City of Vancouver – including Burnaby and New Westminster
• Metro Vancouver – northeast including Coquitlam and Maple Ridge
• Metro Vancouver – southeast including Surrey and Langley
• Metro Vancouver – southwest including Richmond and Delta
• North Shore – including West Vancouver and North Vancouver
• Sea to Sky – West Vancouver Upper Levels to Squamish

The snow is expected to continue through Friday’s commute and into the evening.

Areas near the water will see lower amounts of snow accumulation as it become mixed with rain Friday afternoon. However, the North Shore Mountains could receive almost 25 centimetres before Friday ends.

The snow will end late overnight as the low moves to the south.

Municipalities and TransLink are getting ready for the snow.

Salt trucks have been out across the region overnight and will continue to be on the roads Friday morning when the snow starts falling.

In a statement, the Ministry of Transportation said motorists should be prepared for temporary lane closures on the Alex Fraser and Port Mann bridges.

The authority says crews are monitoring the spans due to snow and wind in the forecast and will be ready to close lanes in order to clear snow from bridge cables.

READ MORE: Windshields shattered after ice bombs fall from Metro Vancouver bridges

As far as TransLink is concerned, the authority says it’s ready.

Spokesperson Jill Drews said they’ll be replacing articulated buses with normal buses because they perform better in the slippery conditions, and will be running trains on the Expo and Millennium lines overnight to keep snow from building up on the tracks.

They’ll also be sending de-icing units down the rails to keep it from building up on the power rails.

Harbour Air has cancelled all flights up until 12 p.m. Passengers should contact them for more information:

Vancouver Airport is also asking passengers to check the status of their flights before leaving their house as some flights have been impacted.

“As airports only allow aircraft to take off and land at a set rate, YVR has also reduced the number of aircraft that can take off and land safely due to the winter weather conditions, and we have delayed and cancelled some flights to meet these requirements,” says Vancouver Airport in a statement.

“As always, we recommend customers check the status of their flight prior to departing for YVR via the Air Canada app or online at aircanada.com. We have implemented a revised ticketing policy for flights departing Toronto on February 22, 2018 for customers who wish to change flights to a different day, space permitting.”

“We’re watching the conditions very closely, and will continue to adjust our operations in response to weather conditions.”

We will be monitoring the snow as it starts to fall across the South Coast.

— With files from Jon Hall, CKNW