Wednesday snow warning intensified to Code Orange for most of the Netherlands

A Code Orange weather warning was issued for most of the Netherlands on Wednesday morning, with heavy snow expected, and persistent, icy roads. The warning will go into effect from 6 a.m. for much of the country, according to Dutch meteorological institute KNMI.

Snowfall of 3 to 7 centimeters is forecast, with some areas, like Gelderland and Overijssel, potentially seeing more. It will start during the overnight hours of Tuesday, leading into Wednesday, spreading from the western regions, the KNMI said.

Along with fresh snow, roads will remain slippery as wet surfaces and leftover snow from earlier falls freeze. Nighttime wind chill can make temperatures feel from ‑5 to -10 degrees Celsius, allowing snow to linger and reducing the effectiveness of salt spread along the roadways.

Only Noord-Brabant, Limburg, and the Wadden Islands will continue to have a code yellow warning. Although the warning is less severe, there is still a risk of slippery conditions due to the freezing of wet road surfaces and leftover snow. Wintry showers are also possible here later in the day.

The Dutch infrastructure agency, Rijkswaterstaat, is urging road users to work from home as much as possible on Wednesday. A “very heavy” morning commute is expected due to the intensity of the snowfall during those hours. Snowfall has caused major traffic problems this week. There have been rush-hour traffic jams totaling more than 900 km and road closures, and the ANWB and Rijkswaterstaat are warning of longer travel times and accidents.

Aside from the highways, severe problems were also expected at Schiphol Airport on Wednesday, the sixth consecutive date where winter storms and strong winds affect operations. Airlines already cancelled 327 of the 545 departures planned for Wednesday, and 313 of 539 inbound flights were scrapped, the airport’s website showed. That reflects about 60 percent of scheduled flights, and airlines were asked to consider cutting 10 percent more as de-icing services may not be available, or will slow down operations.

Meanwhile, the national rail system will also face issues on Wednesday. The Dutch national railway, NS, will operate a winter timetable for the second straight day. That means about two trains will operate per hour on most routes. However, even with the reduced schedule in place on Tuesday, trains did not operate to and from Schiphol Airport for a large part of the day, and few trains were servicing Amsterdam, with problems due to frozen switches reported across most of the country.

KNMI warnings are based on both weather forecasts and the expected impact on society and safety. An orange alert is issued when there is a high likelihood of dangerous weather that could cause significant disruption, damage, or injury, in this case due to snow and slippery conditions.

Updated snow and ice warnings for Jan. 7