Commuters told to prepare for icy conditions as cold snap hits after weekend of heavy rain

A new cold snap is due to hit the UK this week, as drivers have been told to leave extra time for their morning commute due to icy roads, amid warnings for ice and snow across the UK. 

The Met Office has issued yellow warnings for ice across all nations until 10:00 GMT. They said overnight sleet is set to leave slippery surfaces and “icy patches” on roads. 

Snow is forecast to hit Scotland, and there is a chance heavy showers could turn to snow in southeast England. 

The Met Office has told commuters to leave extra time for their journeys, due to “a risk of snow on high ground and slippery surfaces on lower areas”.

Meteorologist Craig Snell said: “This could be a problem during rush hour, it could cause a few problems on the roads. The risk of flooding is still there.”

The yellow ice warning covers Northern Ireland, northern Wales, northern England, northern Midlands and southern Scotland until 10:00. 

In England, there is a yellow warning for snow over Kent and Canterbury until 08:00 but the rain is expected to clear from the South East during the morning. 

Mr Snell said most of the nation will be dry with sunny spells throughout the rest of Monday. 

Cold snap after weekend of floods

The rest of the week is predicted to be cold with patchy showers, particularly in northern areas, until temperatures rise at the weekend.

In northern Scotland, a yellow warning for snow and ice covers the area until 10:00 on Wednesday. 

The cold snap comes following flooding across the UK at the weekend – more than 140 alerts are still active. 

Sarah Cook, from the Environment Agency, said workers on Monday will continue dealing with flooding in the areas which were worst hit by the weekend downpour. 

She advised people to stay away from swollen rivers and to avoid driving through flood water.