More than a thousand flights were cancelled or delayed across the US Northeast and Great Lakes regions due to snow, as thousands took to US roads and airports during the busy travel period between Christmas and New Year's.

New York City received around four inches of snow on Friday night into early Saturday – slightly under what some forecasts had predicted.

At least 1,500 flights were cancelled from Friday night, according to flight-tracking service FlightAware.

But by Saturday morning, both the roads and skies were clearing.

“The storm is definitely winding down, a little bit of flurries across the Northeast this morning," said Bob Oravec, a Maryland-based forecaster at the National Weather Service.

Oravec said the storm was quick-moving from the northwest towards the Southeast US, with the largest snowfall in the New York City area reaching over 15 centimetres in central eastern Long Island.

Further to the north in the Catskills, communities saw as much as 25 centimetres of snowfall.

Newark Liberty International Airport, John F Kennedy International Airport and LaGuardia Airport posted snow warnings on the social media platform X on Friday, cautioning that weather conditions could cause flight disruptions.

The National Weather Service warned of hazardous travel conditions from the Great Lakes through the northern mid-Atlantic and southern New England, with the potential for tree damage and power outages.

Forecasters said the storm was expected to weaken by Saturday morning.

In Times Square on Saturday, workers in red jumpsuits worked to clear the sludge and powder-coated streets and pavements using shovels and snowblowers. (AP)