Bristol snow: Gritting fleet prepares to salt city roads

Gritting crews in Bristol are salting the city's priority roads as snow continues to cause disruption.

Snow started falling in the early hours and the Met Office said more than 16cm (6ins) of snow was recorded at its Filton observation point.

More than 220 schools were closed across the city and travel severely disrupted for much of Friday.

Bristol Airport cancelled all flights before noon but later said the runway was clear and some flights departing.

A spokesman said the airport had been "hit quite hard" by the snow and estimated about 40 flights had been cancelled.

He said the airport had invested heavily in more snow-clearing equipment to keep runway surfaces clear.

Trains affected

Passengers have been advised to contact their airline for the latest flight information.

The Bristol Rovers versus Exeter match set for Saturday at the Memorial Stadium has been postponed.

First Bus suspended services earlier, but some buses started running after midday. Passengers are advised to check the First Bus website for disruptions over the weekend.

Severn River Crossings said the M48 Severn Bridge is closed to all traffic but added the M4 Second Severn Crossing remained open.

The Mall at Cribbs Causeway, which usually stays open until 21:00 GMT on a Friday, closed at 16:00 GMT because of the weather.

First Great Western said some services were being affected by snow with two trains from London to Bristol cancelled. South West Trains has already given advance warning of service disruption.

The company said there was no service between Salisbury and Bristol Temple Meads all day on Friday due to the weather.