Light to moderate snow will continue to fall across New Jersey during the daylight hours on Friday which could make the evening commute difficult, but the latest forecast calls for the snow to stop by early evening and be long gone by the time most people head to bed.
Snow will fall from north to south, possibly starting as early as dinnertime, according to an AccuWeather meteorologist.
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“I suspect that during the first half of tonight, the snow will start to taper off,” said Tom Kines, a meteorologist at the private forecasting company based in State College, Pennsylvania. “It will probably taper off first across the northern part of the state and maybe after an hour or two it will end in the southern part. I think by 6pm probably the northern half will have finished (snow accumulation) and by 8pm the southern parts.”
The National Weather Service generally agrees with AccuWeather on when the snowfall will end.
“Evening traffic will likely be affected to some degree,” said the weather service's Mount Holly office, which covers much of New Jersey. “Almost all guidance indicates that any last bit of snow will move away from the coast by 9 p.m.”
The New York Weather Service, which covers the Garden State's five northeastern counties, said any chance of a few additional flakes would be gone by late Friday night.
“Snow chances end by late evening, with the overnight hours partially calming down,” the New York Weather Service's office said.
The National Weather Service said a winter storm warning is in effect until 10 p.m. for counties that expect higher snowfall totals, between 4 and 6 inches — Burlington, Camden, Gloucester, Ocean and Salem.
The agency's latest forecast map, released around 10 a.m., includes a small pocket of 6 to 8 inches of snow expected north of the Atlantic City Expressway along the border of Camden and Burlington counties.
Winter weather warnings are in effect for New Jersey's 16 other counties, with 2 to 3 inches of dry and powder snow expected in North Jersey and 3 to 4 inches across counties along Interstate 195 in central New Jersey. The Jersey Shore expects 2 inches of snow.
AccuWeather.com is calling for 1 to 3 inches in the northern half of the state and 3 to 6 inches in South Jersey.
Temperatures will reach highs in the teens and near 20 degrees as the snow ends tonight, the weather service said. Wind chills could reach single digits or near zero overnight before what will remain a very cold weekend, although there is no threat of more snow.
Current weather radar
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Jeff Goldman can be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com.
