Traffic continues to be seriously disrupted tonight due to contininuing snow falls, slushy conditions and icy roads.
Snowfall throughout the day has made driving conditions difficult and hazardous, especially on the south side of Dublin, on parts of the M50 and in outlying areas such as Tallaght and Blessington.
Motorists were warned this evening of extremely difficult conditions on the M11 due to ongoing snowfalls.
Hazardous conditions remain in Killiney, Stepaside, Lambs Cross, Ballyogan and also around Kilternan. Gardaí have advised drivers against making any unnecessary journeys.
Sleet and snow showers were leading to dangerous driving conditions in other parts of Leinster. Care is also advised on all routes through Cavan.
AA Roadwatch said some roads, particularly in Wicklow, were impassable due to heavy snowfall. The Wicklow Gap, Kilcroney road and Kimacanogue were deemed passable tonight, but motorists are being urged to drive with extreme care. The Wicklow Gap, Sally Gap, Roundwood and any other higher ground should be avoided.
Conditions are also difficult throughout Ulster, Connacht and Munster, with severe snowfalls being reported in Co Mayo tonight.
According to Met Éireann, tonight will be dry but very cold, with widespread frost and ice. Temperatures will fall to between 0 and -4°C in some areas. Tomorrow is expected to be cold again with more scattered showers of
hail, sleet and snow expected, mostly in the north, north west and south west. Temperatures are expected to reach a maximum of 6°C.
Some Dublin Bus routes on the southside were affected and were either terminating early or have altered their routes to take account of the weather conditions.
In Dublin, there were some delays to inbound traffic on Amiens Street early this morning after a crash involving a Dublin Bus.
Separately, Dublin airport was forced to close to all departing and arriving flights from about 1pm due to snow on the runway. Dublin Airport Authority said the runway had been treated and it was reopened this evening.
AA Roadwatch reported some problems with its own website today, ironically due to the volume of traffic. A spokeswoman said the site had received about the same number of 'hits' in an hour as it normally would in a single day. Total daily hits were multiples of the normal traffic in recent days, although final figures had to be confirmed.
Serious traffic delays earlier in the week prompted calls for an “emergency” traffic management plan for the greater Dublin area and business leaders said the traffic problems had caused “chaos”. Even short journeys from the city centre to the outskirts of suburbs such as Blanchardstown took as long as two hours to complete in evening rush-hour traffic.