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BOSTON, MASS. - The snowstorm that never seems to end rocked coastal New England at the height of the morning commute on Tuesday, prompting schools to close and causing air travel havoc.

The National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning for coastal areas of Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine and a winter weather advisory for southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island, though the storm was expected to taper off by early afternoon.

The wintry weather that moved into New England on Sunday night has already dropped more than two feet of snow in some areas of central Massachusetts, and 16 inches in Somers, Connecticut.

In Warwick, Rhode Island, where residents were digging out from 4 inches of fresh snow, Doreen Goy worked a snowblower with steely determination and a singular focus: getting in a workout.

“I need to get to the gym,” she said as she cleared a sidewalk in front of her home.

The Boston area had only about four inches of snow, but the weather made for a messy commute. A jackknifed tractor-trailer on Interstate 95 in Sharon blocked all southbound lanes, causing backups. The highway has since reopened.

In Massachusetts, Republican Gov. Charlie Baker urged people to work from home if possible and delayed the start of the work day for non-essential state employees by two hours.

In Maine, Democratic Gov. Janet Mills originally delayed the opening of state offices, then announced that they'd be closed altogether because of the storm.

In New Jersey, Jersey Central Power and Light reported more than 36,000 homes and businesses are without electricity Tuesday even as the storm moved out of the region.

What seemed like one three-day storm, was actually two storms, said Justin Arnott of the National Weather Service, in Gray, Maine.

“It's complex from the standpoint that there's been more than one low pressure system that has hit us in short succession. Normally we get a break - but not this time,” he said.