Cuomo: Travel Ban in Effect on All Long Island Roads Monday Night

A full travel ban on all Long Island roads goes into effect at 11 p.m. Monday, Gov. Andrew Coumo announced.

“This is a serious situation,” Cuomo said in enacting the travel ban, which also applies to New York City and other counties that are under a state of emergency. “If you violate this state order, it’s a possible misdemeanor. It’s fines up to $300.”

The Long Island Rail Road and New York City subways will also shut down at 11 p.m.

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Cuomo said earlier Monday that a travel ban was being considering and the latest forecast shows the storm only getting worse, with up to 3 feet of snow possible on Long Island and wind gusts of up to 70 mph on the East End.

Cuomo was on Long Island Monday afternoon and said the roads “are already very, very dangerous.” The rate at which snow is expected to fall–2 to 4 inches an hour Monday night into Tuesday–will make it very hard to clear the roadways, Cuomo said.

The travel ban, which does not apply to emergency vehicles, will remain in effect “until we see what happens tomorrow,” Cuomo said.

“If you are in your car and you are on any road–town, village, city–after 11 p.m., you will technically be committing a crime,” he said.

The only good news?

“The good news is the sun will come out again,” Cuomo said. “We just don’t know when.”

RELATED:

• Blizzard Warning in Effect, Up to 3 Feet of Snow Possible
• Blizzard 2015: Latest Long Island Snowfall Totals
• State Allows Schools to Postpone Regents Exams Due to Blizzard
• Hour-by-Hour Long Island Blizzard Forecast
• Long Island Red Cross Offers Storm-Related Safety Tips

Photo by Anthony Quintano/Flickr/ Creative Commons: The Long Island Expressway during a blizzard in February 2013.