Ian Mackie wrote in post #17401024
2-3 inches in the UK cripples some of the bigger cities, and most of the rail system -- don't know why we've never learned from the countries used to regular snow falls.
Jill-of-all-Trades wrote in post #17401099I don't understand why a couple inches of snow shuts down rail systems. If anything, they are the ones that should be able to keep moving. Only once have I seen weather stop the trains here. We had a record setting blizzard that shut down a huge area. High winds kept visibility to zero for three days straight, and built epic snowdrifts. The only reason the trains stopped here is because the heaters for the siding switch had not yet been set up for winter and when a snowdrift formed over the switch it froze. Three rail crews were sent out to dig it out but none of them made it here. My neighbour dug one of their trucks out of a snowdrift with his backhoe. Eventually the train crew managed to dig it out themselves and force it over into position, but from then on every train was forced onto the siding.
It was a rare case. We had the perfect conditions for really, really dense snow drifts to form. Once the wind died down and we were able to see outside, and to start digging out, I discovered that I was able to drive a tractor on top of the snowdrifts. Only sank an inch or two.
Ian Mackie wrote in post #174010242-3 inches in the UK cripples some of the bigger cities, and most of the rail system -- don't know why we've never learned from the countries used to regular snow falls.
Jill-of-all-Trades wrote in post #17401099I don't understand why a couple inches of snow shuts down rail systems. If anything, they are the ones that should be able to keep moving. Only once have I seen weather stop the trains here. We had a record setting blizzard that shut down a huge area. High winds kept visibility to zero for three days straight, and built epic snowdrifts. The only reason the trains stopped here is because the heaters for the siding switch had not yet been set up for winter and when a snowdrift formed over the switch it froze. Three rail crews were sent out to dig it out but none of them made it here. My neighbour dug one of their trucks out of a snowdrift with his backhoe. Eventually the train crew managed to dig it out themselves and force it over into position, but from then on every train was forced onto the siding.
It was a rare case. We had the perfect conditions for really, really dense snow drifts to form. Once the wind died down and we were able to see outside, and to start digging out, I discovered that I was able to drive a tractor on top of the snowdrifts. Only sank an inch or two.
1cm of snow can cripple the UK 
all it takes is a lack of grit...
over here, it is a case of "idiocy" vs "we can handle it in canada/northern US etc...."
all it takes is 1 moron to drive like a prick in heavy snow, cause an accident, and you're at a standstill....and the snow piles up, and the plows can't get through... and the queues build up and up and up. That is what cripples a city. but then in a city you don't have just 1 moron, you have 100,000 or 1,000,000+ of them. bald tyres, can't drive in rain let alone snow, can't handle a car in a spin...
as for the trains, we also have to deal with salty seawater on the coastal areas, and freezing up of switches etc. When a lot of trains run on electricity as opposed to the mainline diesel trains, you're going to get a LOT of issues, which means, mass transit also buggers up.
throw in the low visibility, say syonara (sp?) to the planes, and the buses fall under the guise of gridlock.
coming home from england on sat night, driving back from the airport, it was snowing, not a lot but it was wet and heavy, saw 3-4 accidents on a 1 mile stretch of road, of people biting it, spinning around into trees or oncoming traffic... that was on a quiet road. do that on a highway, and you stop everything up...
