The western portion of the NY Thruway was closed due to a lake effect storm

Update: As of approximately 7:45 p.m., the New York State Thruway has banned all commercial vehicles in both directions from Exit 46 (Rochester – Corning – I-390) to the Pennsylvania line until further notice.

Below is the original story:

A portion of the State Thruway, also known as Interstate 90, is closed near the western border with Pennsylvania as heavy snow continues to fall Friday evening.

According to the state authorities, the western side of the expressway from exit 57 in Hamburg was closed from around 5:30 p.m.

That means all westbound drivers will be forced to exit at Exit 57, about 60 miles from the state’s western border with Pennsylvania.

This afternoon, the state closed the highway from Exit 59 in Dunkirk, about 30 miles from the state line. The Pennsylvania side of I-90 is also closed.

The Thruway asks all motorists to avoid the Thruway west of Lackawanna.

A state of emergency has been declared in 11 counties in western and northern New York as intense and potentially dangerous bands of lake effect snow advance into these areas today.

Here is the weather forecast from the National Weather Service as of Friday at approximately 4 p.m.:

Latest models show Watertown could see up to 70 inches by Monday.

Earlier today, Governor Kathy Hochul said New York has banned empty and tandem commercial vehicles from major roadways in Western New York, including portions of the Thruway.

The ban includes:

• The New York Thruway (Interstate-90) from the Pennsylvania line to Buffalo (Exit 53)
• Interstate 86 from the Pennsylvania state line to Interstate 390
• U.S. Route 219 from the Pennsylvania line north to the Thruway