MINNEAPOLIS _ Slick, sloppy and slow. Snowy, too. Very snowy.
A morning rush hour more typical of January was underway Tuesday in Minneapolis, and it's likely to be like that all day as an early spring storm pounds the Twin Cities and much of southern Minnesota.
The evening commute could be tough, too, as snow will fall all day and won't stop until 6 to 8 inches has piled up in the metro area and even more in places such as St. James, Red Wing and places south and east of the Twin Cities, said National Weather Service meteorologist Bill Borghoff.
More than 180 plows were on the highways and freeways Tuesday morning trying to keep the roads clear, but it "will be a challenging commute in the metro. Travel any place will be a challenge," said MnDOT spokesman Kevin Gutknecht. "The good news is that the temperatures will allow the salt to work. We are all ready for winter to be over, but it is not over yet. Drivers will have to slow down."
At 6:50 a.m., Metro Transit said the weather was causing minor delays on the bus system with 26 percent of buses running late. The average delay was 4 minutes, the agency said. Light-rail trains and the Northstar Commuter train appeared to be on schedule.
If there is a silver lining, the snow is the "lighter and fluffier" stuff that will be easier to shovel rather than the heavy and dense snow typical with early April storms. But there will just be lots of it to move, Borghoff said.
A Winter Storm Warning is in effect until 1 a.m. Wednesday as the snow will come in waves, with the heaviest expected to fall from midmorning to midafternoon.
"It feels like January," Borghoff said. "April can see decent winter snowstorms."
Already many students are getting an extra spring break from school as several districts have called off classes Tuesday. Districts scrubbing classes include Fairmont, Hastings, Mankato, New Prague, Northfield, Redwood Falls and Winona. Metro area schools closed Tuesday included Prior Lake-Savage, Burnsville, Eastern Carver County, Farmington, Lakeville, Shakopee and Westonka.
Snow-coated roads have spawned 10 crashes between 5:45 and 6 a.m. adding to the misery that began Monday night when an icy mix of precipation sent cars skidding into ditches and into each other.
The State Patrol reported that troopers responded to 197 crashes statewide between noon and 8:45 p.m., and 123 spinouts.
For winter-weary Minnesotans longing for spring, crocuses and tulips are in the foreseeable future. In fact, Tuesday night's low temperature will sink into the single digits in the Twin Cities and flirt with zero or drop below that north of St. Cloud, Borghoff said.
"Maybe in the middle of the month," he said when asked about spring's arrival.
Highs will hang around the 30s much of the week and maybe will touch 40 degrees by early next week, he said.
