Please be aware that the amber warning remains in place until 10.00pm this evening Friday the 19th of January 2018, for snow showers and ice in certain areas of Dumfries and Galloway with a Stage 3 – High Risk of Disruption travel warning issued for parts of the region.
The advice from Police Scotland is that if possible the public should try to make their return journey home earlier as the indications from the Met Office are that the worst of the weather is likely to impact from around 1500 hours this afternoon. Police are advising not to travel within the amber warning area, unless absolutely necessary. Whilst there is no certainty where within that area the snow will fall, where it does significant disruption may result.
The areas which are likely to be most affected are northern parts of Dumfries and Galloway, much of Strathclyde, fringing into the Borders, West Lothian and Falkirk.
Superintendent Louise Blakelock, of Police Scotland’s Road Policing said:
‘As we progress into this afternoon and evening, I would like to remind the public of the ongoing risk of disruption due to the forecast. If you travel on the road network in the warning area, you will be disrupted and you will face significant delays. With that in mind I would urge the public to think and plan ahead for their return journey home this afternoon. If you are able to, please make your homeward journey earlier. If you are an employer, please think carefully about allowing your staff to return home early if possible.
‘I would like to make it clear that there is a high risk of disruption for road journeys and with that comes a high likelihood of the conditions being very poor, therefore I would ask people whether their journey is really necessary?
‘Please ensure you are checking the most up to date information from Traffic Scotland and the Met Office.’
You should have seen Police Scotland issued a rare stage four ‘Do Not Travel’ warning earlier in the week.
This is extremely unusual, but what do the different stages mean and how many stages are there in the warning process? Here we explain all,
Stage 1 – No Issues
This is what we experience most of the year, normal conditions and no issues on the road network.
Stage 2 – Travel with Caution
This is when the weather may have some impact on travel, people may experience some delays and driving conditions could be described as poor.
Stage 3 – High Risk of Disruption
This is issued when driving conditions are expected to be extremely poor and there is a high risk of disruption for road journeys. We would suggest you only travel if absolutely necessary.
Stage 4 – Avoid All Travel
This warning is only issued when driving conditions are expected to be extremely dangerous. If you do travel, you could experience severe disruption and long delays. We would advise against all travel during a stage 4 warning.
We would encourage you to help your friends and family understand the process and tag them or share this post.
Check @PoliceScotland, @TrafficScotland, @MetOffice for the latest information.
