Interstate 80 is seeing its first major snow-related shutdown of the season up in the Sierra as big snows arrive with this winter storm. And this means even heavier traffic on Highway 50 and a standstill on 80 Tuesday afternoon near Alta, 30 miles northeast of Auburn.

Hopefully some of you who were trying to get to Tahoe for the holiday week got the news early enough that a storm was headed our way, and managed to get Tuesday and Wednesday off work. But if you left in the late morning today, chances are you are stuck in some ugly traffic as heavy snowfall and multiple crashes have shut down I-80 in both directions between Alta and Truckee, as the CHP reports on Twitter. As KCRA reports, as many as 11 separate crashes happened Monday on the stretch of I-80 between Alta and Truckee, and chain controls had just been implemented before the freeway was shut down.

“Well, you can forget the winter storm warning — the winter storm is here,” says CHP Officer Pete Mann, per KRON 4. “Things are busy and it’s snowing hard.”

Chain controls are also in place Tuesday afternoon on Highway 50 heading into South Lake Tahoe between Twin Bridges and Meyers.

The National Weather Service has already issued a warning to people not to attempt traveling to the Sierra in the middle of this storm, as conditions are only worsening as night falls. Snow is beginning to stick to roadways above 2,500 feet, and conditions are bad, with white-out conditions likely and travel becoming "nearly impossible."

ABC 7's Mike Nicco gives a little "I told you so" via this report on Monday afternoon, in which he said, "You'll want to leave no later than Tuesday morning."

ABC 7 also spoke with several Bay Area residents today about how they're changing their holiday plans rather than get stuck in the snow.

Photo: California Highway Patrol