ALBANY — New Year’s revelers faced subzero wind chills from Times Square to Buffalo as snow, wind and brutal cold dropped New York into a deep freeze on the last day of 2008.

A fast-moving storm swept through from the Midwest, leaving a blanket of snow from three to 10 inches deep across the state.

The snow, accompanied by winds gusting up to 20 mph, caused dozens of traffic accidents as drivers contended with slippery roads and near whiteout conditions in some areas.

Commuters on the highways around New York City were slowed by numerous accidents as snow began falling in Westchester County and on Long Island in the late morning.

Weather-related accidents also closed some roads in the Buffalo and Rochester areas late Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning.

And state police said there were at least 50 accidents in the Albany area, including a pileup on the Adirondack Northway caused by a driver who lost control while trying to merge with traffic.

The snow had all but finished by early evening, but in its wake came a blast of cold air that plunged most of upstate into single-digit temperatures with sustained winds that made it feel as cold as 25 degrees below zero in some parts of the state.

The hundreds of thousands of people watching the ball drop in Times Square weren’t shivering quite as badly as many of their counterparts upstate.

The snow largely passed New York City, which got around three inches, and temperatures dipped into the low teens with wind chills as low as minus 5 degrees.

Meanwhile, the roughly 40,000 revelers who turned out to watch the ball drop in Buffalo, New York’s second largest city, braved wind chills of around two below.

“We’ve had past New Year’s Eves here with similar weather,” said Peter Cutler, a spokesman for Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown. “We’ve got some pretty hardy souls here. It would have to be something pretty extraordinary to keep people away.”

Hundreds of runners in Saratoga Springs also turned out for a 5k run as part of that city’s “First Night” celebration.

“When you’re a runner around here, you sort of get used to it,” said race organizer Jeffrey Allen. “People will dress appropriately, and they can stay inside just before the race starts and go back in right after the finish.”

But not everyone was willing the brave the elements.

Two newly-elected county legislators and two re-elected state legislators were to take the oath of office at 5 p.m. at the historic Putnam County Courthouse in Carmel.

But officials rescheduled the ceremony until next Tuesday because of the bad weather.