Winter driving in mountains ahead of snow for Denver’s morning commute on Monday

DENVER – Winter driving conditions are expected Sunday in parts of Colorado’s high country — including along the I-70 corridor – before the storm system arrives in Denver just in time for the Monday morning commute – potentially dropping 1 to 3 inches of snow to portions of the metro.

This blast of cold and snow is just the first of a series winter-like storms that will blow through Colorado, bringing a big weather change to Denver’s 10-day forecast.

Winter weather advisories are in effect in Colorado’s northern and central mountain ranges and for the northern and southern foothills where snow accumulations could stack up to 8 inches or more.

“Higher amounts exceeding a foot of snow possible near Winter Park and northern Larimer County,” said the National Weather Service (NWS) in Boulder.

The winter weather advisories in the mountains are in effect through at least 11 a.m. Monday. As of 7:30 a.m. Sunday, the Denver metro area was not under a weather alert, but snow accumulation in the metro is expected, despite warm ground temps.

“It appears that to the east of I-25, snow amounts will be between a trace and 2″ while on the west side of I-25, snow amounts will be between 1-3″ with potential for another inch or two in areas immediately next to the foothills like Boulder and Golden,” said the NWS in its forecast discussion.

Colorado, Denver-metro snow timeline

Denver7 weather forecaster Katie LaSalle said Sunday’s high temp in Denver will warm into the 50s, with relatively calm conditions ahead of the abrupt weather change starting late Sunday into Monday morning as snow picks up in the mountains through the day Sunday.

“Making its way to Steamboat, Rocky Mountain National Park – more widespread snow with heavier snow for much of the I-70 corridor as we get into tonight, wet weather arrives in Denver,” said LaSalle. “It’ll be rain shifting over to snow and it all depends on how cold the temperatures get, and right now it appears it’ll be in the low 30s in Denver. Not a lot of accumulation expected. We could see trace amounts downtown, but 2 to 4 inches over the Palmer Divide.”

NWS Boulder

Despite relatively low snow totals in Denver and warmer ground temperatures, drivers should be on alert for potential road issues on Monday.

“Increasing confidence the morning commute in metro Denver-Boulder will have slick roads and poor travel conditions. Please allow extra time for your commutes,” wrote the NWS.

Tuesday, in time for election day, brings a brief break from the cold and moisture before a chance of snow arrives in Denver again on Wednesday, where the afternoon high temperature will only warm to around 35 degrees.

Expect windy and cold conditions on Thursday before snow and rain showers return on Friday into the weekend in Denver.

Denver7

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