Mayor Marty Walsh hosted a press conference on Tuesday afternoon just after 3:30 p.m. to address Bostonians about the ongoing blizzard conditions.

At City Hall, Mayor Walsh provided updates on the number of bans, prohibitions and snow removal operations by the City of Boston.

Snow removal will be a priority around Boston’s schools. All schools are closed through Wednesday but Mayor Walsh said depending on how well the city fares in terms of snow removal, closures could extend into Thursday.

Though Gov. Charlie Baker lifted the state’s travel ban in Berkshire, Franklin, Hampshire and Hampden counties, it still applies to the rest of the state and Boston is no exception. It also applies to I-90.

“Doing everything we can to dig out and stay on top of this storm,” said the mayor. We certainly need everyone’s cooperation out there.”

As of 3 p.m. today, the mayor’s hotline had received 13,028 phone calls of which 100 percent were answered in 30 seconds time.

The forecast for the city of Boston calls for roughly two feet of snow, which will cease around 1 a.m. early Wednesday morning at which time the National Weather Service may lift its blizzard warning. Accumulations are expected to continue until 4 a.m.

Boston’s snow emergency and parking ban will be lifted sometime tomorrow morning, but Mayor Walsh is urging people to work from home if possible.

“We’re still very much in the middle of this storm in the City of Boston,” added Mayor Walsh. “Around 11 a.m. our roads got hammered again, particularly the side roads. Please be patient… I’m confident we can get through this storm as a city.”

With white-out conditions like the ones we’re witnessing, residents tend to shovel out a parking space and claim it as theirs using some kind of object – a chair, traffic cone, etc. Though the practice itself is discouraged, and actually banned in the South End, Mayor Walsh did say that for those who take the time to clear a spot, it’s theirs for at least a couple of days.

 

Stay tuned to BostInno for more information about the blizzard. We’ll be sure to keep you updated as more information continues to be made publicly available.

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