Gritting Costs £150,000 A Night

Gritting Northern Ireland's roads in severe weather conditions costs £150,000 a night, the Roads Service has said.

Usually gritting the road network costs £75,000, but Roads Service said they were currently "double salting".

A severe weather warning remains in place after another night of freezing temperatures.

The weather is also continuing to affect air travel and a number of rural schools will be closed on Wednesday.

The Roads Service had 134 gritting lorries out overnight, battling to keep over 4,000 miles of roads open and safe for traffic.

It advised motorists to exercise extreme caution, particularly when driving on untreated roads.

Colin Brown from the Roads Service said they were close to spending all of their £5m budget, but that road safety was a priority.

"Budgetary concerns are one thing we have to bear in mind, but road safety has to take precedence," he said.

"We'll be working within the department very closely to make sure any finance we need is made available to us.

"We are quite confident we'll be able to get through the rest of the winter."

Air Travel

Bad weather in England, Scotland and Wales has affected flights in and out of Northern Ireland.

At Belfast International all Wednesday morning flights to and from Bristol, Luton, Gatwick and the Isle of Man have been cancelled.

All Easyjet flights to and from Liverpool John Lennon Airport have been cancelled.

At George Best Belfast City Airport the morning flights from Birmingham and Bristol have been cancelled.

Air travellers are advised to contact their airline before making their way to the airport.

For a collection of great snow photos click here