Skip to content

Rail and roads hit as cold moves across country

Watch the ice and snow warning weather forecast for Scotland

Wintry conditions have caused disruption to road and rail travel in many parts of Scotland, with warnings of further bad weather to come.

There are currently no services on two railway lines in the Highlands after heavy rain caused landslips and flooding.

The Far North Line between Inverness and Wick is closed due to landslips at three sections of the route and flooding at Beauly.

Rail operator ScotRail said the line will be closed between Inverness and Dingwall until Saturday.

Network Rail A road-rail vehicle inspecting the route between Mallaig and Fort William in the snow Network Rail
Inspections were carried out of the railway line between Mallaig and Fort William

The Highland Main Line has reopened north of Perth, having been closed due to flooding in the Kingussie area.

Passengers had been moved on to buses for the duration of the closure.

Anyone hoping to travel on the railways is being urged to check their journey.

The disruption came as cold weather moved in across the country after a period dominated by low pressure, heavy winds and rain.

A Met Office yellow weather warning for ice has been issued for the north and west of the country.

A yellow warning for snow also covers much of the north.

The warnings cover the period between Thursday afternoon and Friday morning.

The cold conditions are expected to cause disruption within the warning areas, with further snow and ice warnings in place until Monday.

Alex/WeatherWatchers Snow in the Highlands. A landscape where trees are white with snow and there's a few inches of snow on the ground. Alex/WeatherWatchers
Snow is covering many parts of the Highlands

There are also warnings of difficult driving conditions throughout the country as a result of snow and ice. The A939 between Cockbridge and Tomintoul in Aberdeenshire has been closed due to snow.

Police Scotland warned drivers in South Aberdeenshire of poor driving conditions, urging: "Please consider if your journey is absolutely necessary and if travelling is required pay attention to forecasts and drive according to the conditions."

Weather warnings

Further warnings of snow and ice for Scotland have been issued, running from 10:00 on Thursday to 09:00 on Monday.

On Friday, ice is forecast to create difficult travel conditions in the west of the country.

There are also warnings of ice and snow in the far north, Orkney and Shetland into Friday, with forecasters predicting 3-7cm of snow in places, while up to 10cm could fall on higher ground.

Wintry weather is then expected over the weekend, with a Met Office yellow weather warning for snow covering the south east of the country between 4-6 January.

People walking away from camera towards Pittodrie Park, there is a good covering of snow and the sun is setting behind the stadium
Aberdeen fans had to make their way to Pittodrie through the snow where their team played Ross County
Snow falling and people walking along Aberdeen's beach boulevard. There are two people in winter clothing walking along.
Aberdeen has seen prolonged snow

Transport Scotland advised those travelling to be cautious and plan ahead.

A spokesman urged the public to check conditions before travelling.

He added: "Please drive to the conditions, follow police travel advice, and allow extra time for your journeys.

"There is still a fair amount of localised flooding and a number of weather warnings remain in place. We've chaired another call with our key operational partners and the Multi Agency Response Team to ensure operating companies have suitable resources in place.

"We are grateful to staff who are out working 24/7 in challenging conditions to help keep most major roads open, with care and caution."

Heavy rain and wind caused widespread disruption on Hogmanay, with events cancelled.

Roads were closed, trains were cancelled and households experienced power cuts, particularly around Inverness and the Highlands.