UK > History > 2010 > Environment / Weather (I)

Travel chaos eases as weather relents

Most main roads relatively clear and Eurostar services returning to normal as freezing conditions begin to recede

Friday 24 December 2010 10.34 GMT
Guardian.co.uk
James Meikle and agencies
This article was published on guardian.co.uk
at 10.34 GMT on Friday 24 December 2010.
It was last modified at 11.39 GMT
on Friday 24 December 2010.

The travel chaos that hit Britain during icy conditions earlier this week eased as the weather relented today, giving many travellers a belated opportunity to get away for Christmas.

Most main roads were relatively clear, although motorists were told to expect ice even on gritted routes as subzero temperatures continued.

Temperatures are likely to fall below -10C (14F) in central and western England tonight, and airlines and rail operators have warned of continuing delays and cancellations.

Forecasters said parts of Scotland and possibly north-east England were the only places likely to see snow falling on Christmas Day, although heavy snow may be more widespread on Boxing Day.

Andrew Howard, the head of road safety at the AA, warned drivers: "When you get to -10, even if the road has been treated, you really need to treat it as untreated."

The AA has advice for drivers on its website, pointing out that stopping distances are 10 times longer in ice and snow.

This morning, the west coast main line operator Virgin Trains said some services were subject to delays of up to an hour, with trains to and from Glasgow Central and Manchester Piccadilly most affected.

National Express East Anglia and Stansted Express services were running to a reduced timetable, as were services operated by the Northern Rail train company.

The East Coast train company axed eight London to Leeds services and ran amended services on other routes. First Capital Connect, London Midland, Chiltern, Merseyrail and Scotrail were among other companies cancelling some services.

Bob Crow, the leader of the RMT transport union, said: "It's a scandal that the private train operating companies can simply chop 25% of their services, install a 'special' timetable and avoid financial penalty.

"This racket shows that the private rail franchise system is rigged in favour of the train operators and means that they can provide what services they like, when they like, leaving passengers out in the cold while the train companies are laughing all the way to the bank."

After major disruption to Eurostar trains this week, the company said in a statement that it expected to run a "near normal" service today, adding that passengers should arrive at the normal check-in time for their trains.

British Airways said it was hoping to operate all its long-haul flights at Heathrow airport, along with most short-haul services.

Where possible, the company was flying larger long-haul aircraft to European cities to increase its seat capacity, and was also hiring extra aircraft to help fly as many passengers as possible.

A BA statement said: "In an attempt to free up even more seats, we are continuing to encourage customers who hold bookings to or from Heathrow up until the end of New Year's Eve to either re-book for a later date or claim a full refund if their journey is not essential."

Other UK airports cancelled some short-haul flights because of continuing bad weather in Europe. At Birmingham airport, flights to and from Brussels and Paris were affected, while Aberdeen and Edinburgh warned passengers to expect delays and cancellations.

Much warmer temperatures are expected in some parts of the UK by the middle of next week. Steven Davenport, a senior forecaster at MeteoGroup, the weather division of the Press Association, said: "This is certainly the coldest December since 1981, but where it stands in the all-time cold Decembers rather depends on what happens in the next few days.

"This December has the potential to be the coldest since 1890 when the central England temperature [an average for the month] was as low as -0.8C.

"But a system is moving in from the Atlantic that will bring less cold air. This could lead to heavy and prolonged snow on the night of Boxing Day and into next Monday, but after that temperatures in south-west England, and possibly London, could be as high as 10C by Wednesday."

    Travel chaos eases as weather relents, G, 24.12.2010, http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/dec/24/travel-chaos-eases-weather-relents

Snow brings more chaos to UK

Drivers stranded on roads in south-west, flights suspended and schools face more closures

Steven Morris and Maev Kennedy
Guardian.co.uk
Wednesday 13 January 2010
10.17 GMT
This article was published on guardian.co.uk at 10.17 GMT
on Wednesday 13 January 2010.
It was last modified at 10.17 GMT on Wednesday 13 January 2010.

Drivers were trapped for hours in cars, schools faced more closures and flights were suspended as the cold snap's possibly final flurry of snow swept across parts of the UK.

The south-west of England was particularly badly affected last night and this morning, although the band of wintry showers also hit the midlands, the south-east and London early today.

Departure boards with long lists of cancellations and delays confronted commuters trying to get into and out of the capital by train. There were delays of up to two hours on South West Trains services through Woking in Surrey, and buses replaced trains on Southern routes including Eastbourne to Brighton. Scores of London Midland trains were cancelled or delayed by an hour or more in and out of Euston, and the company replaced trains with buses between Worcester and Hereford.

There was further chaos on First Capital Connect services crossing London, where in addition to weather problems, passengers have suffered delays and cancellations for weeks caused by driver shortages.

Dozens of flights were delayed or cancelled at Heathrow airport.

The M5 motorway was down to two lanes near Tewkesbury at one point and there were lane closures on the M4 and M32. The M48 was closed in both directions over the old Severn Bridge crossing and bus routes across Bristol were seriously disrupted.

In Devon hundreds of drivers were stuck in vehicles until the early hours and police escorted some people to makeshift rest centres.

Some drivers caught on the A38 in Exeter were angry that it took so long to clear the road even though the heavy snowfall had been predicted. The rescue effort was hampered by a three-car pile-up and numerous jack-knifed lorries.

Higher ground in Devon, particularly on Dartmoor and Exmoor, had drifts of three metres or more of snow The snow eased in the early hours, to be replaced by rain showers. These fell on frozen ground and were expected to cause more dangerous conditions.

Snow brought traffic chaos in the south Wales valleys, with motorists taking hours to move a few miles and some routes still shut this morning. Police in some areas said people should attempt to drive to work only if absolutely necessary. Flights at Cardiff, Gatwick, Birmingham and Southampton airports were affected. Hundreds of primary and secondary schools across south and west Wales were closed.

In Scotland a number of roads in the Highlands were closed because of snow. According to folklore, St Hilary's Day – 13 January – can be the coldest day of the year. But after the freezing start to the year it will feel relatively warm in some places, with temperatures in most areas ranging between 0C (32F) and 3C (37F).

Forecasters said the weather was expected to stay chilly until the weekend and then turn warmer and wet. For the moment, the Met Office has continued to issue severe weather warnings for most of England and Northern Ireland.

The latest snowfall comes as the government demands further cuts in road gritting. The transport secretary, Lord Adonis, has announced it must be cut to half the levels of this time last week to conserve stocks.

Local councils said ice had caused a higher than usual number of potholes, with some estimating repair bills running into millions.

The communities secretary, John Denham, praised the way people had pulled together to help each other during the snow. "Alongside the excellent work of the public services in responding to the severe weather we have seen many tremendous examples of the way Britain's communities have pulled together, with people lending vehicles, digging clear paths to allow ambulances and police vehicles through and visiting neighbours in need," he said.

The snow has led to some unusual sights. Residents in the Forest of Dean have had close encounters with hungry wild boars that have sneaked out of the woods to forage in bins. "Snow rolls" – large cylindrical formations of snow familiar on the prairies of North America but rarer in the UK – have been spotted in fields in Somerset.

Meanwhile, brave – or foolish – football fans were setting off from Plymouth to Newcastle, a round trip of more than 800 miles, for an FA Cup replay.

At the Birdland sanctuary at Bourton on the Water, a pair of snowy owls have had to be brought indoors, after their outdoor aviary collapsed under the weight of the snow.

    Snow brings more chaos to UK, G, 13.1.2010, http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/jan/13/snow-chaos-uk