Road users are being warned about treacherous conditions following freezing rain during early Wednesday morning.
The sleet and snow that fell in the early hours has left side roads and hill roads covered in a sheet of ice, making many of them impassable. This is unlike usual weather conditions where snow falls onto roads and is then compacted into ice. Last night saw slightly warmer conditions lead to rain falling, until the temperatures dropped and rain turned into clear ice across all surfaces.
The Met Office has advised those travelling on Wednesday morning to check road conditions, bus and train timetables and amend travel plans if necessary. This has forced motorists to use main roads during Wednesdays rush hour, leading to congestion and long queues into towns.
The cold weather is set to continue as the Met office have issued a storm warning for Thursday and Friday. A further yellow weather warning for snow, expected in a large part of England, will be in place from 6pm on Thursday until midday Friday. The severe wintry weather will be brought by the strong winds over northern France, named Storm Goretti by the country’s forecaster, Meteo France.
Storm Goretti is also expected to bring disruption, although the impact to the South-East is yet to be fully established.
