Heavy Snow Causes Chaos, It’s Not Just Us …….

[john.wigley]

Originally Posted by DaveNP

Reading that BBC article the road closure was in Skane County which is the southernmost bit of Sweden alongside Denmark and the E22 there looks pretty much like an English dual carriageway through English countryside, the -42C temperatures were in the far North. Just like the UK has drivers in the North used to harsh winters and drivers in the South who turn into quivering wrecks at the sight of one snowflake I'd expect the two ends of Sweden engender different levels of coping in harsh weather too, and either way they do seem to have suffered a bit of a freak storm which would overwhelm even the best planning.

When I was driving for a living I got to the point of ignoring the media hype about extreme weather and impassable roads, and went over to reviewing the weather charts from the met office and checking the motorway cameras (available online) to see for myself before I left home.

David, you are so right. The difference in climate between the North and the South of Sweden is considerably greater than that between the N and S of Britain. Sweden is a long, narrow country; if you were to pivot it about it's Southernmost point, the bit N of the Arctic Circle would lie S of the toe of Italy. There is approximately three weeks difference in the seasons from the N to the S.

Winter tyres are required from (IIRC) 1/11 to 31/3. Motorists either garage their cars for the winter (our friends in Uppsala do that) or switch to winter wheels. As mentioned in my earlier post, local farmers are contracted to keep a section of road clear and, in conjunction with winter tyres and, as others have said, driver skills, is normally sufficient to maintain traffic flow.

Occasionally, as happened here, extreme conditions catch them out.

Regards, John.

P.S. The best car that I had in the snow was an Austin A35. Rear wheel drive, low power, light weight and narrow, cross-ply tyres (stiffer side walls), it was virtually unstoppable. J.

[ITSv40]

Originally Posted by john.wigley

P.S. The best car that I had in the snow was an Austin A35. Rear wheel drive, low power, light weight and narrow, cross-ply tyres (stiffer side walls), it was virtually unstoppable. J.

Wow, that brings back memories. My first car was an A35 van. In the snow it was awesome - never got stuck and as you say, the skinny tyres would slice through snow like a hot knife through butter. I then moved on to my first Volvo - a 145S on Pirelli Cinturato tyres. It wasn't a patch on the A35 and none of my subsequent cars have come anywhere near either.

[GrahamHR]

Originally Posted by john.wigley

Winter tyres are required from (IIRC) 1/11 to 31/3. Motorists either garage their cars for the winter (our friends in Uppsala do that) .

I was booked a hotel room in Uppsala ca 2009. I was asked the following day in the factory I was visiting what I thought of it. I was very polite saying it was deserted, no restaurants open but OK, they burst out laughing. Voted the most boring university town or city in Sweden apparently. It was late September, nothing open apart from the hotel bar! They were right.

Nothing bad meant about your friends living there of course !

[john.wigley]

Originally Posted by GrahamHR

I was booked a hotel room in Uppsala ca 2009. I was asked the following day in the factory I was visiting what I thought of it. I was very polite saying it was deserted, no restaurants open but OK, they burst out laughing. Voted the most boring university town or city in Sweden apparently. It was late September, nothing open apart from the hotel bar! They were right.

Nothing bad meant about your friends living there of course !

They would probably say the same but that they like it that way!

If you could get beneath the visitor / tourist level and become a 'local', it is not too bad. Gamla (Old) Uppsala was particularly interesting. Swedes as a race tend to have a natural reserve. If you can penetrate that veneer, you would also find that they are a very friendly and welcoming people. At least, that was always our experience.

Regards, John.

[Fika]

The temps were considerably lower than what is normally expected for those months but not really a deal breaker (folk huddle at home).

I recently got to experience -30 in North Sweden and things don't behave like they normally do... Boot lock not engaging, sticky door sensor, really stiff and sticky clutch pedal (this part kind of scares me), needing to use engine heater all the time + jumper on standby, half the boot space occupied with survival items for the family should the car break down: blankets, battery bank, emergency phone, torch, candles, lighter, dozens of hand warmers, and a tonne of chocolate, etc.

British weather is bliss in comparison.

[john.wigley]

The problem with chocolate, 'Fika', is that it is tempting to eat it and for it not be there for emergency use. An old Swedish gentleman of our acquaintance said that he used to carry a couple of tins of dog food instead. It did not tempt, no one was likely to nick your snack, and it provided a valuable source of substinance in case of emergency. I'm still uncertain if he was pulling my leg, or not!

Regards, John.

[Ulrikas PA]

Originally Posted by Ulrikas PA

I used to get annoyed with our media and weather forecasts hyping up 'heavy snow' when it actually means 2 inches / 5 cms.

The current weather is yet another example of over the top 'weather-mongering'.

The Met Office released a yellow weather warning for 'cold weather' a couple of days ago.
For 90% of the UK this means 4 or 5c during the day and maybe -1 in the odd place at night.
I just find it a lame example of justifying your own importance as an organisation.

How will we cope if we do get a severe cold snap and have been fed a regular dose of this?

[andy_d]

Originally Posted by Ulrikas PA

The current weather is yet another example of over the top 'weather-mongering'.

The Met Office released a yellow weather warning for 'cold weather' a couple of days ago.
For 90% of the UK this means 4 or 5c during the day and maybe -1 in the odd place at night.
I just find it a lame example of justifying your own importance as an organisation.

How will we cope if we do get a severe cold snap and have been fed a regular dose of this?

We cope, we understand this alien concept of "oh its winter lets put a winter jumper on/eat properly" etc
snowflakes on the other hand use it as an excuse to bang on about "global warming" or "climate change" cos brainwashed morons
gov use it to tax us more, so "media" get "suggested" they push the omgwearedoomed messages more to justify taxes,,brain deads fall for it and morons buy EV cars... (which in serious cold temps have issues with battery charge/range,,,but the morons will shout that down cos brainwashed morons always do)

[Existential Crisis]

Love driving in snow! Best car I had for it was an old 1200cc beetle. Our old BMW e36 Compact 316i was absolutely brilliant too, despite what many woukd have you believe. Was away to gym at 04.50 this morning having a wee bit of fun on a snowy industrial estate, big kid!!

[The Thong]

Originally Posted by Existential Crisis

Love driving in snow! Best car I had for it was an old 1200cc beetle. Our old BMW e36 Compact 316i was absolutely brilliant too, despite what many woukd have you believe. Was away to gym at 04.50 this morning having a wee bit of fun on a snowy industrial estate, big kid!!

Mk1 Freelander, it was faultless on snow and ice. It’s a shame the motor was a POS

TT