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Snow to give way to rain after creating ‘difficult commute’

A dusting of snow coated the roots of an elm tree at Boston’s Public Garden Monday.David L. Ryan/globe staff

A period of rain will trail the morning snow that has passed over Boston Monday, but the precipitation will be gone in time for the evening commute, the National Weather Service said.

After a gnarly morning drive, in which slippery roads led to many crashes around Massachusetts, forecasters said the ride home should be easier.

“The good news is this afternoon/evening commute should be much better,’’ forecasters said.

State Police Sergeant Tom Ryan said the weather had a significant effect on traffic across Central and Western Massachusetts. He could not give specific numbers about the number of crashes, but he said there were many.

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“[The] light snow and icing caused a lot of spin-outs, and tractor-trailers had issues trying to get up hills,” Ryan said. “It was definitely a difficult commute.”

Ryan said most of the crashes were minor, and he wasn’t aware of any that caused serious injuries.

“Any time you get a coating — and I would say this is the first significant snow this season — people forget how to drive in inclement weather,” Ryan said. “If they fail to adjust their driving behaviors, that’s where we run into trouble.”

MassDOT had sent out 870 plows by 10 a.m. to treat highways across the state, and speed limits on the Massachusetts Turnpike were lowered to 40 miles an hour earlier in the morning from the New York border to Exit 9 in Sturbridge, officials said.

Boston was expected to get about an inch, while communities north and west of the city will get more — up to two inches — the weather service projected.

The precipitation will stop Monday afternoon and Tuesday will be dry.

High temperatures Monday will be in the 30s and 40s, dropping below freezing overnight, forecasters wrote. Temperatures will remain above freezing into Wednesday, forecasters said.

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Jemma Moore biked over the Massachusetts Turnpike in Allston.Lane Turner/Globe Staff

John R. Ellement can be reached at ellement@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @JREbosglobe.


Dylan McGuinness can be reached at dylan.mcguinness@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter at @DylMcGuinness.