Wintery weather to return

It’s looking like a cold weekend ahead, with the chance of snow early next week.  Our fleet of gritters will be out and about helping keep the roads free of ice (and snow). 

You can see the daily gritting decision by following us on Twitter (@TfBAlerts) or by checking our winter page, where you can also track the gritters on an interactive map.

Here is a quick update from the Met Office ahead of the very cold weather and snow potential for the coming week. 

Headline:

Increasingly cold conditions will develop over the weekend with an increased potential to see snow showers which could lead to disruption to transport, icy conditions and the potential for power outages.

Warnings Issued:

No warnings have been issued for the Thames Valley, but this will be kept under review.

Next 48-72 hours:

The high pressure that was forecast to develop across northern parts of Europe has now become established and the easterly wind has developed bringing cold air off the continent.  There will be a good deal of fine, dry weather today (Friday) and over the weekend with good sunny spells at times.  By Sunday daytime temperatures will rise to only just above freezing and overnight temperatures will be well below leading to severe frosts.  The low temperatures and fairly brisk easterly wind will lead to a significant wind chill, making it feel well below freezing. 

Monday / Tuesday:

Bitterly cold air will have arrived across Southeast England by Monday and, along with this, an increasing risk of seeing snow showers. Daytime temperatures will struggle to rise above freezing with severe frosts continuing overnight. 

In this weather set up it tends to be the eastern coastal counties that see the brunt of the frequent heavy snow showers and warnings have been issued for these areas.  However, the latest forecast suggests that the Thames Valley area, could see snow showers from the second half of Monday and through Tuesday although they will be less frequent and organised than locations further east.  Some places could see accumulations of 1-2 cm but no warning has currently been issued but this will be kept under review over the weekend.

If warnings are required over the weekend they can be found on the Met Office App or the Met Office website at http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/public/weather/warnings.

Further Ahead:

The very cold conditions and risk of heavy snow showers continues through the rest of next week. Temperatures will remain below freezing on some days with severe frosts overnight.

TfB preparing for disruption of Handy Cross M40 junction weekend closures

UPDATE: 27/02/18 Weekend works for Fri 2nd - 5th March POSTPONED

Due to the poor weather forecast, the resurfacing works at the Handy Cross A404/M40 junction 4 roundabout for this weekend have been postponed (Friday 2nd to Monday 5th March). The roundabout and approach roads were due to be closed for a third weekend running for continuing resurfacing works.

Highways England have liaised with Buckinghamshire County Council, Wycombe District Council and Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead to re-programme the works for the weekend of Friday 16th March (9pm Friday to 5am Monday 19th), and apologise for any inconvenience caused. Highways England will provide advanced warning signage on site to inform motorists before the rescheduled works start.

Original post:
Transport for Buckinghamshire is preparing for the disruption to traffic from the weekend closures of the A404/M40 Handy Cross roundabout from mid-February. Highways England will be carrying out resurfacing on the roundabout over three consecutive weekends, from 9pm Friday night to 5am Monday morning on the weekends of Friday 16th February, 23rd February, and 2nd March. The resurfacing works require a full closure of the roundabout, as well as the approach roads leading to the junction.


While these are not TfB works, they are preparing for the disruption to traffic that the closure is likely to cause in surrounding areas and have placed an embargo on any other non-essential road works in a 10 mile radius of the M40 works. Additional traffic management will also be used on diversion routes, particularly the smaller roads less well equipped to deal with heavy traffic.

About the works:

Highways England is carrying out the resurfacing to ensure this essential junction remains in a safe condition. The existing road surface will be dug out and fully resurfaced, the traffic signals and detection loops will be replaced, and anti-skid material will be laid at selected areas of the roundabout. During the closures various clearly signed diversions will be in place, primarily using the M40 junctions 3 and 5, the A40, Wooburn Green and Little Marlow.

Emergency services will have access through the closure, as will TfB gritters should they need to get through to salt the roads, although gritting routes have been adjusted to minimise disruption.

The X80 and 800/850 bus routes – which serve High Wycombe, Marlow and Reading – will be diverted during the weekend closures, and National Express will not be serving the Handy Cross Coachway during the closure. Details can be found on the bus service disruption page on the county council website.

TfB will be collaborating with Highways England to make use of the road closures on the approach roads, and carry out maintenance works such as small scale resurfacing, gully clearing, sign cleaning, and street lighting repairs.

If you have any questions or would like to know about the works, you can contact Highways England on 0300 123 5000 or email them at info@highwaysengland.co.uk. TfB have set up a webpage with FAQs about the closure, bus information, and diversion information and maps. Visit buckscc.gov.uk/handycrossclosure