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NEW YORK (CBS) ― Old Man Winter woke up early this year, throwing off his coat of snow right on top of the Tri-state, and shaking off some extra sleet, ice, and rain for some added bite.

It was a dog day afternoon in New York City as Mother Nature gave us winter at its best and worst. The white whammy gave snow lovers an extra skip in their step while others tried skipping over what it left behind.

"It's alright, it's not so bad," said city resident Aisha Joseph. It's winter. You expect it."

By 5 p.m., Central Park had seen about 3.6 inches of snow, while Newark measured 4.4 inches and Sparta measured 7.5 inches.

As most New Yorkers covered every bit of skin, some braved the cold, like Harry Moore, who wore shorts in a trip to the store.

"I was going to take a short workout in Riverside Park, but then I decided to do some shopping and I must admit I stayed out a little too long," he said.

Speaking of too long, try getting a cab on a day like today.

"Ten minutes we've been out here," said Jordan Lancaster, who couldn't seem to find a vacant taxi.

It was a bad day to be in a hurry in New York. Snow-packed roads turned treacherous, like I-84 which was littered with accidents.

The mess left drivers wondering: where are the snow plows?

"I have not seen any plow trucks whatsoever, maybe one sitting on the median but none on the road," said motorist Will Otto.

"About 10 miles back I saw one going eastbound," said trucker Mark Narrod. "No salt, no plows."

With accident after accident on I-84, Narrod decided to call it a day.

"It's not worth it – putting it into a ditch or getting someone killed," he said.

Narrod is hundreds of miles from where he needs to be, but the nasty conditions on the road convinced him to park his rig and hole up in the safety of his sleeper cab.

"It's warm, I've got food," he said. "It's like a little apartment!

Drivers say most of the accidents they passed were minor because no one can go very fast.

"Everyone's going like 25, 30 [mph], being careful, just trying to get home for the holidays," said motorist Paul Thomas.

The Thruway Authority says plows were out, but the snow fell so fast it was hard to keep up. Many like John Piazza of Middletown, who stopped to get lunch, couldn't believe how much fell in such short time.

"Probably just a dusting when we pulled up and now 2 or 3 inches in an hour, coming down real heavy," he said.

It was sticky stuff that clogged windshield wipers, and made it tough to shovel and quick to accumulate in New Jersey.

And some of the snow and sleet turned roads into ice, like on the entrance ramp to 46 in Little Ferry where traffic backed up. Cars and trucks found themselves stuck in the slush and going no where.

Drivers admit they were warned, and now many wish they had simply stayed home.

"The weather is pretty bad. Roads are tough, there's a lot of traffic," said David Montas of Englewood Cliffs.

From the highways of New Jersey to the middle of Manhattan, break lights added flashes of red to an all white landscape.

Of course not everyone complained, like tow trucks driver who like to stay busy, which was certainly the case on Friday.

"I've been very busy. I've been up since 6:30," said tow truck driver Victor Francisco, who said he'll stay on the roads until he stops getting calls. 

CBS 2's Tony Aiello, Sean Hennessey, Dave Carlin contributed to this report.

   

(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)

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