Winter weather travel advisory in effect for Toronto as 10 to 20 cm of snow expected

Environment Canada has issued a winter weather travel advisory for Toronto with a storm expected to move through southern Ontario.

Wednesday started off with rain which will transition into snow by the afternoon, the weather agency said.

The snow will then continue through the night before easing by Thursday morning, the advisory continued.

“Additional lighter snowfall is expected Thursday for the Greater Toronto Area, however there is still some uncertainty regarding the additional associated snowfall amounts,” Environment Canada said.

Global News Chief Meteorologist Anthony Farnell said the heaviest snow will hit Toronto by late Wednesday impacting the Thursday morning commute.

It is expected the city will see between 10 and 20 cm of snow.

The storm comes just over two weeks after a massive snowstorm blasted southern Ontario, dumping between 35 and 55 cm of snow depending on the area.

The Jan. 17 snowstorm forced Environment Canada to declare blizzard warnings, remote learning for students was extended, drivers were stuck on major Toronto-area highways as plows could not keep up with the quick rate of snowfall and the cleanup took days.

Meanwhile, the City of Toronto said crews are preparing to deal with another significant snowfall.

The City said preparations are underway with operations “focused on the safety and movement of residents and emergency vehicles, with salting and plowing of roads, sidewalks and bike lanes.”

More than 1,500 personnel, 600 snowplows, 360 sidewalk plows and 200 salt trucks will be used 24/7, officials said.

“Salters will be deployed as soon as the expected rain changes to freezing rain,” city officials said. “Plows and salters will be strategically placed across the city, ready to begin operations in their assigned areas as soon as possible in response to the weather.”

In an interview with Global News on Wednesday, Ontario Provincial Police Sgt. Kerry Schmidt urged the public to stay at home unless they “absolutely need to be on the road.”

“So tonight, and even tomorrow, if you don’t need to go to the office to go to work, tomorrow may be a great day to stay home,” he said. “Let the system pass, let the plows and road crews do their job and once the highways have been cleaned, then we can reassess getting traffic back onto the highways.”

Schmidt said the more traffic on the roads, the harder it is for road crews to “stay on schedule.”

If you must leave your home tomorrow, Schmidt said to allot extra time to get to your destination.

He said drivers should also be “mindful that the conditions may not be as they appear.”

“You may think the roads are just wet, but because of the temperature and the continuous falling of snow and rain, that could easily freeze into conditions that will surprise you when you go to hit the brakes if you need to stop suddenly,” he said.

Schmidt said to keep both hands on the wheel and eyes on the road.

“And give yourself lots of distance so you can change lanes or adjust your driving well in advance,” he said.

— With files from Hannah Jackson