Cold snap wreaks havoc on travel routes

SOME of the winter's coldest weather so far hit travel in Britain, France and the Netherlands earlier this week, closing roads, grounding flights and forcing train cancellations, including on Eurostar, just days after a power outage caused major disruption.

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A TRAIN arrives into the station in the town of Glossop, Derbyshire, northern England after a light snow covered the region. AFP

(AFP)

Eurostar, which links the UK to the European mainland, told passengers travelling between London and the Netherlands to postpone their journeys, as services could not operate beyond Brussels due to the Dutch weather.

Rail traffic through the Channel Tunnel had only resumed on New Year's Eve, after an electricity failure stranded thousands of passengers and even trapped some for a night on a powerless train.

"Due to expected adverse weather conditions, the traffic is suspended in the Netherlands today," Eurostar said in a live service update, urging travellers affected not to turn up to the station.

Six trains between London St Pancras International and Paris Gare du Nord were cancelled, with most others delayed, the timetable indicated.