New alerts and warnings issued for snow-covered, slushy roads and limited visibility

Roads nationwide are covered in snow or slush, and visibility may be limited, the minister of construction and transport said on Facebook on Wednesday.

Snow-covered, slushy roads

János Lázár mentioned the M0, M44, M1, M7, M5, M6, M3, M30, M43, M85 and M86 motorways and highways as ones with a slushy or salty surface, but added that the motorway operator was using over 500 machines across the country to make roads accessible.

The minister said railway services were uninterrupted but delays of 15-20 minutes could be expected in the western parts of the country. He said the switches were being cleaned continuously, but “cleaning is slow because of continued snowfall and the efforts are focused on major hubs”.

Coach services are delayed across the country, with buses running up to 60 minutes late, and bypassing some villages, the minister said.

Orange and yellow alerts

Meanwhile, weather service HungaroMet issued a second-degree (orange) alert for several counties in the east, forecasting further snow until Thursday morning. Along the River Tisza, 10-20 cm more snow could be expected, and somewhat less in the central-eastern and southern parts of the country, the service said.

Dániel Mukics, the spokesman for the National Disaster Management Directorate (OKF), told a press conference that all state bodies were working at full capacity to mitigate the disruptions caused by the snow, and the operative board set up to manage the situation was asking local councils to do the same.

Attila Fülöp, state secretary for care policy at the interior ministry, said a “code red” has been declared from 8am on Wednesday, mandating all social institutions to take in homeless people in need.

Budapest: main roads, bus lanes accessible

Gergely Karácsony, the mayor of Budapest, said the city was working at full capacity to clear the snow from the roads, adding that public transport was being given the priority.

Citing this morning’s report, Karácsony said in a post on Facebook that the main roads and bus lanes were all accessible. He said clogged switches were causing disruptions in certain places, but were being cleared. Everyone is doing their job with maximum effort,” Karácsony said.

Read also:

• A new wave of snowfall arrived in Hungary – here’s the latest report
• Road accidents tripled: Extreme winter weather claims life of cyclist in Hungary