A massive nor'easter winter storm slammed North Jersey on Wednesday, bringing heavy snow, strong winds, coastal flooding, and dangerous driving conditions. The overnight high-impact storm also suspended rail and bus service for NJ Transit and canceled online learning for the state's largest school district Newark.
According to a statement released by NJ Transit, the agency said due to severe winter weather impacting the region, customers should expect that the following service will remain suspended through the early morning hours of Thursday, December 17th.
NJ Transit said rail service would remain temporarily suspended along with central and northern New Jersey bus service, including routes serving the Trenton-area and Port Authority Bus Terminal in New York City. Hudson-Bergen Light Rail and Newark Light Rail service remain suspended, as do all Access Link service except for Region 3 in South Jersey.
The National Weather Service said the storm's bite lived up to its bark as over a foot of snow fell on parts of Northern NJ between Wednesday night and Thursday morning.
In an unprecedented action prompted by the 2020 winter weather nor'easter Newark Public School's Superintendent Roger Leon, the district announced that all online learning would be canceled for Thursday.
Superintendent Leon stated the following in communication to teachers, students, parents and staff on Wednesday night:
"Good evening. Due to the weather-related state of emergency in New Jersey and Newark, all remote learning classes and any school-related activities for Thursday, December 17th are canceled. Central office will remain open for essential staff".
"The storm was expected to bring up to a foot of snow from central Pennsylvania, into southern New York and New England between Wednesday night and Thursday morning," officials at The National Weather Service said.
"Confidence is high that this major winter storm will result in significant impacts including travel disruptions and power outages," the NWS added.
NJ State Police reported that the first significant snowfall to hit the state already led to a massive traffic pileup, but no fatalities have been reported.
The NWS added that, at this time, snow could fall at the rate of 2 inches per hour or more until it tapers off before noon.