Heavy snowfall and ice have caused significant disruptions to traffic in the Czech Republic on Tuesday. Cars face difficulties, some reportedly due to a lack of transition to winter tires. Firefighters have been dispatched to deal with fallen trees, and the issues have also impacted railway transport. Meteorologists had previously issued snow and ice warnings, predicting problems until Wednesday morning.
Snow near Prague is complicating traffic. Videos from Chýně in Prague-West show the severity of the situation. The snow calamity is complicating the operation of PID lines across the entire Central Bohemian Region. Buses and trains are delayed, and numerous roads are impassable.
On Tuesday evening, a truck got stuck on a slippery road north of Prague. This occurred around 5:30 pm on road 9 in Zdiby at the exit from D8. Footage from the Aktu.cz agency clearly shows that the truck skidded on a gentle hill and blocked the road, causing a traffic jam.
A series of accidents occurred on the western edge of Prague beyond Zličín. Cars first crashed on the road between Chýně and Chrášťany, later on the detour route between Sobín and Zličín. According to Novinky’s reporter, the vehicles that hit had summer tires in several cases.
The railway is also experiencing problems. Trains S3, R21, and R43 are running with significant delays due to snow-covered switches at the stations in Prague-Satalice, Prague-Čakovice, and Chotětov. Lines S5, R24, and R45 are having problems due to a switch failure in Kladno, and line S34 was canceled entirely today. Some bus services across the Central Bohemian Region were canceled, some lines were shortened or are running with delays, and several buses got stuck on snow-covered roads.
As for Prague and public transport, problems can affect buses and trams. The transport company attributes delays not only to impassable roads but also to heavy individual car traffic. “Trams have minor delays due to relatively heavy traffic and falling snow. Cars are driving slower and more cautiously, and a minor delay can occur when they share a route with a transport method. Buses pick it up in the peripheral parts of Prague, locally, sporadically,” summarized the situation on Tuesday evening Daniel Šabík, spokesman for the Prague transport company, according to whom, however, this is nothing extraordinary considering the current weather.