Thursday's morning commute could be messy.
The cold front passing through Northern California will bring rain sooner than expected with slightly less rain than anticipated Thursday because the front is moving so quickly, according to a revised forecast from the National Weather Service.
But faster means stronger winds and slightly colder temperatures, as in downed trees and branches as well as frost warnings.
The end result is a wet, windy and potentially icy morning commute Thursday.
The rain storm is tracking southeast and is expected to hit the North Bay between 4 a.m. and 7 a.m., then the bulk of the Bay Area from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. and finally Monterey and San Benito counties from about 10 a.m. onward.
A freeze watch is in effect for most of Contra Costa County, as well as in Santa Clara Valley from San Jose south into San Benito and Monterey counties.
A slightly warmer freeze warning is in effect for inland areas of Sonoma County as well as in Napa County.
These same areas could see similar temperatures Friday morning, with only slightly warmer conditions expected Saturday morning.
Get a weekly recap of the latest San Francisco Bay Area housing news. Sign up for NBC Bay Area’s Housing Deconstructed newsletter.
Peak wind gusts for the region are expected between 25 and 35 mph, so the forecast urges the public to prepare for possible downed trees and/or tree limbs Thursday.
The heaviest predicted rainfall for Thursday has been downgraded from 3 inches to 2 inches for areas south of the Big Sur area and north of Bodega Bay and Santa Rosa.
The rest of the Bay Area will see about a half-inch less than first predicted, now forecast for 0.5 to 1 inch except for the San Francisco and Santa Rosa, which could see up to 1.5 inches of rain.
Weekend rainfall totals will be smaller than Thursday's storm, with most areas forecast to receive a half-inch or less.
