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The great blizzard of 2026 enveloped New York City in massive amounts of snow starting yesterday—just weeks after another storm brought life to a halt. In many suburban areas, crews were still clearing the remnants of that system when this one hit. And the snow keeps coming.
Right before the precipitation started to get heavy last night, NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani declared a state of emergency across the five boroughs and issued a travel ban that will remain in effect until at least noon today.
“ We are asking New Yorkers to avoid all non-essential travel, please for your safety, stay home, stay inside and stay off the roads,” Mamdani said during an official press conference last night. “Hazardous conditions put delivery workers, drivers and restaurant staff at risk. If you can do so, please look out for your fellow New Yorkers and prepare meals at home until the weather improves.”
With the city seeking emergency snow-shoveling volunteers and precipitation still falling in parts of the state and alternate side parking suspended, the best advice is simple: stay indoors. If you absolutely must head outside, here’s what you need to know about the travel ban.
Driving
Cars, commercial trucks and e-bikes are not allowed to drive around the city right now until, at least, 12pm. That applies to bridges, highways and local streets. Mamdani noted that violating the travel ban would be akin to a Class B misdemeanor.
NYC subways
Keep in mind that things keep shifting, so you'll want to check the official MTA website for the latest alerts. Right now, the majority of lines are running locally with severe delays.
Parts of the S line are suspended, as are the C and W trains.
Overall, above-ground lines are impacted the most.
NYC buses
Unsurprisingly, buses have been hit hard. Expect major detours and reroutes. There are no express buses running at the moment. You’ll also notice that the longer, accordion-style buses aren’t on the streets today. They’ve been replaced with shorter, standard models fitted with chained wheels that can navigate the snow more easily.
Long Island Railroad
The Long Island Railroad suspended all services starting 1am until the weather clears up.
"We will restore train service once it is safe to do so," announced the MTA.
Metro-North Railroad
The Metro-North is operating on an hourly schedule on the Harlem, New Haven and Hudson lines. The Danbury, New Canaan, Wassaic and Waterbury trains are operating on a weekend schedule.