Tuesday's commute should be colder but not quite as slippery as today's drive to work.

Colder will be the order of the day, Todd Hamilton, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Bismarck, said today.

If the clouds move out with today's snow system, Tuesday's low could dip below zero, but if the clouds stay, expect the low today to range from zero to 5 above, Hamilton said.

Three inches of snow had fallen in the Bismarck area by mid-afternoon today, and Hamilton expected another inch or less to fall before the system moved out of the Bismarck area.

Today's snowfall should match or exceed the Bismarck area's highest snowfall this winter. That was around 3 inches, Hamilton said.

Bismarck has received around 8 inches of snow so far this winter.

Today's snow had enough moisture to not cause problems with blowing, he said.

Although winds were expected to blow between 10 and 20 mph overnight Monday, "We are not expecting real big problems with blowing snow tonight," he said.

Tuesday's high should be in the teens, but Wednesday should bring warmer temperatures, more wind and maybe a quick shot of snow.

The forecast Wednesday calls for a 30 percent chance of snow after noon and mostly cloudy. The high was forcast to be near 26, with a south wind between 10 and 16 mph, and gusts as high as 21 mph.

"It's definitely not a big snow maker like we have seen today," Hamilton said. He predicted a trace to a couple of tenths of an inch in the Bismarck area.

But Wednesday's white stuff probably won't mean another round of shoveling the driveway and sidewalk.

"There probably will be enough wind to blow it off," he said.

(Reach outdoor writer Richard Hinton at 250-8256 or richard.hinton@bismarcktribune.com.)