Arctic blast freezes roads on ‘flat battery Monday’ as ice warnings issued

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Brits have been warned of dangerous icy roads as millions return to work and school during an Arctic blast on Monday.

A yellow weather warning has been issued by the Met Office for the northeast of Scotland all the way down to Nottingham until 11am at the earliest.

Halfords expects the combination of lockdown, the festive break and the weather to cause motorists problems starting their cars this week.

With temperatures forecasted to not rise above 5C anywhere in the UK on Monday, bookies have slashed odds on this winter being the coldest since records began.

The mercury dropped as far as -9.1C in Loch Glascanoch in the Scottish Highlands as the Arctic blast took a grip of the country on Sunday.

RAC Breakdown spokesman Simon Williams said: "The message for those who have to drive is to adjust their speed according to the conditions and leave extra stopping distance so 2021 doesn't begin with an unwelcome bump and an insurance claim.

"Snow and ice are by far the toughest driving conditions, so if they can be avoided that's probably the best policy."

As gritters were on task to make Britain's roads safer, "ghost trains" were deployed on railways to clear ice from tracks throughout the night clearing ice.

The odds of this winter being the coldest ever on record in the UK have gone from 4/6 to 1/2 at bookmaker Coral.

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Coral spokesman, John Hill said: "With temperatures continuing to drop, we could be edging towards the coldest winter since records began in the UK.

"It's been a chilly start to the month and as a result, it is now odds-on that this will be the coldest January ever in this country."

A repeat of 2018's "Beast from the East" is looking possible this month as a "sudden stratosphere warning" could be triggered next week and bring in freezing blasts from Siberia.

Some experts predict 30 inches of snow might fall in just one day in the middle of January but there will not be "significant snow" until the end of this week.

Meteorologist Alex Burkill said: "Obviously it's very cold and it's going to stay cold through this week.

"Whilst there will be some wintry hazards around, it's not really until the end of the week until we see any significant snow."

  • UK Weather
  • Weather Forecast
  • Met Office

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