Visibility could be reduced

Road conditions are expected to be favourable on Sunday over the Southern Interior highways, but meteorologists are warning visibility could be reduced.

Environment Canada meteorologist Cindy Yu said not much precipitation is expected to fall today.

“The freezing levels we are expecting will stay stable and we are expecting better conditions than last weekend,” she said.

Five to 10 millimetres of snow fell over many of the highways Saturday night into Sunday morning.

“The Coquihalla Summit didn’t have a whole lot of snow accumulation,” she said.

Yu said due to the elevation of the Pennask Summit being around 1,700 metres, it received about seven centimetres of snow.

“Allison Pass didn’t receive a whole lot, because the elevation for that pass is about 1,300 metres,” she said. “Little Bear, on the Coquihalla Highway between Hope and Merritt, is about 1,600 metres and got about six centimetres.”

Kootenay Pass received about 14 centimetres of snow last night, and will likely have another few centimetres by the end of the day.

“You can see that most of the sites below the 1,600 metres didn’t receive a whole lot of snow and that is pretty much where the snow level was,” said Yu.

Most highway passes received wet snow and they were just slight about freezing.

Yu said driving on most of the Southern Interior highways will be OK.

“The temperatures are warm enough that it should be OK, and we are having partially clear skies through today so that is good for travelling,” she said.

Temperatures are expected to cool down tonight and many add just a few more periods of light snow or flurries.

“We are not expecting any significant amounts… having said that two to four centimetres is still possible in some locations,” she said.

According to Yu, the wet snow will stick together and could cause visibility issues.

"When the snow is quite wet in the sky we tend to get the big flakes,” she said. “Just because we are forecasting some light snow it doesn’t mean it won’t reduce visibility… so take caution.”

Drive BC has provided these seven tips to help you travel safely:

• Make sure your car has proper tires.
• Make sure both your headlights and taillights are working
• Make sure your car has a full tank of gas. 
• Dress the part. Pack warm clothes, boots, gloves and blankets. 
• Bring food and water. 
• Check DriveBC. 
• Carry a cell phone.

For updates on road conditions visit this link.