[InitialLastName]

> Only problem is with 2 feet of snow on the ground, no one will bike or walk

In the absence of systems for snow removal, most people wouldn't be driving in 2 feet of snow either (yes, some do it, but some people drive in all sorts of reckless circumstances).

The cities in the intersection of "viable to thrive without a car" and "get a lot of snow" mostly do a good job of dealing with the latter to preserve the former. They usually clear snow quickly on the thoroughfares, sidewalks and bike lanes and have other solutions (tunnels, non-road transit, etc) for managing the more difficult journeys.

[wolverine876]

Northern cities often have snow on the ground and roads during commutes, enough that you need a transportation system that addresses it.

Also, it's cold. Dry or not, people don't want to bike in the cold. And finally, many people are not fit physically for such travel, including the elderly, sick, etc.

[asdff]

I'd say from knowing people who live in boston and chicago the answer is actually mostly not. Especially in boston snowstorms are typically catastrophic and shut down life until they are cleared out which might be quite a long time.

[jefftk]

I live in Boston, and would not describe snowstorms as catastrophes that you just wait out. The plows are out right away, and only every few years is there a blizzard bad enough that they'll require people to stay home.

[mprovost]

I wonder how much this is going to change now that so many people have figured out that they can work from home at least part of the time. First it starts with snowstorms, then maybe we'll see less traffic on rainy days...

[InitialLastName]

I suspect this is a reflection of availability bias; the only snowstorms you hear about from the people you know in Boston are the ones that are catastrophic and shut down life (which do happen occasionally, but the same could be said of hurricanes in Florida).

[whimsicalism]

Strong disagree - Boston & Cambridge are exceptionally effective at returning life to normal within hours on a snowy day.

Many sidewalks are quickly scooped up by paid workers too.