Here’s what you need to know as polar vortex, winter storm set to batter NYC with frigid temps, snow

An icy winter storm fueled by a polar vortex is set to drop 1 to 3 inches of snow on the metro area Monday, starting in the thick of the morning commute and only intensifying as the evening rush approaches.

“Be careful going outside, and take it slow if you’re driving,” New York City Mayor Eric Adams wrote on X on Sunday afternoon, while assuring commuters that city snow crews will be working to try to keep things clear during the mess.

“Whatever amount of snow we get, one thing’s for certain: it’s going to be incredibly cold,” he added.

A winter storm is spreading snow, ice and freezing temperatures across a swath of the central United States FOX Weather

Snow is expected to begin flurrying during the early commute, with heavier accumulation beginning between noon and 4 p.m., snarling the evening rush hour.

Temperatures won’t get higher than the low 30s throughout Monday and will remain in the 20s in the morning and evening, forecasters said.

While the higher end of the forecast predicts up to 3 inches of snow, meteorologists from Fox Weather said the white stuff will likely be closer to the 1-inch mark.

That forecast extends from across northern New Jersey out to Long Island. North of the city into the Hudson Valley and Connecticut are not forecast to see more than a wintry mix.

Snow is set to begin flurrying in New York City in the morning, and any real accumulation will likely begin between noon and 4 p.m. Paul Martinka

The winter weather is being helped along by a seasonal polar vortex, or cold-air system blowing from the poles, that helped create a raging storm across the central US over the weekend, blanketing the country from Kansas to Missouri through Illinois, Indiana and Ohio with snow, ice and freezing temperatures.

While most of the tri-state area will be spared the brunt of the storm, southern New Jersey — from Toms River down — could see 8 inches of snow or more beginning Sunday night.

Meteorologists caution that the rest January will be frigid, too.

“We’ll be waking up each morning with lows somewhere in the low to mid 20s and then ‘warming up’ into the low to mid-30s,” a Fox Weather Meteorologist told The Post, adding that those conditions will likely persist through the end of the month.

The city is unlikely to see temperatures break into the 40s — as was enjoyed at the end of December — for several weeks.

“There may be one quick spike spell where we get into upper 30s. But you know that’s still cold by most people’s standards,” the forecaster added.