Latest news with #snowseason
ABC News
14-07-2025
- Automotive
- ABC News
School holiday snow tourists urged to drive safely amid surge in vehicles sliding off road
Holiday-makers hitting visiting ski fields in New South Wales are being advised to drive to the conditions amid a surge in vehicles sliding off roads. More than 6,000 motorists were estimated to have attended ski resorts over the weekend, which forced road closures after car parks at Perisher and Thredbo reached capacity. It is peak period in the Snowy Mountains due to the rush from the NSW and ACT school holidays. "So far this snow season, there's been a fourfold increase on last year with people sliding off the side of the road," Transport for NSW operations management executive director Craig Moran said. Mr Moran said there had been about 100 instances of cars sliding off the road so far this winter, but none were considered to be major crashes. Roads remain busy today and Kosciuszko Road or Alpine Way may be closed again due to car parks filling up. Visitors are encouraged to take public transport including the Skitube or the NSW government's Snowy Mountains Bus Service. Drivers can subscribe to SMS alerts from Transport for NSW for information about car park capacity. They are also being urged to fit snow chains to their tyres. "Driver error and inexperience is playing a factor," Mr Moran said. "Please slow down, be easy on the brake and accelerator and just be patient. "Driver behaviour generally has been pretty good … it's just some people making poor choices." Mechanics in Jindabyne have plenty of experience repairing vehicles during winter. Snow Country Automotive co-owner Megan Shirk said it was "anticipated". "Winter is our crazy, busy period," she said. Ms Shirk said vehicles needed work after long trips, wildlife strikes or collisions en route to the ski resorts. "Just last week we had a two-in-one job — one guy had swerved off the icy road into another girl's car," she said. Ms Shirk said she could empathise with those travelling long distances to get to the slopes but urged drivers to slow down. "I used to be a Sydneysider — I know the story," she said. "You drive six hours or so to get here and all you want to do is get to the snow. "I can understand people are impatient these days, but people aren't driving to the conditions and slowing down."
ABC News
04-07-2025
- Climate
- ABC News
Snow resorts ready for school holiday surge
School holidays have started across most of the country and it's also turning out to be a bumper snow season with a lot of ski resorts saying it's easily the best start to the season in many years. But as the alps prepare for a massive influx of tourists, coastal communities are in recovery after record rainfall and flooding hit large stretches of the coast.
SBS Australia
06-06-2025
- Climate
- SBS Australia
Snow, polar winds, drought-easing rain: The wild weather in store for the long weekend
Australia's ski resorts are set to officially open this long weekend. Snow could fall for four days across southern Australia. Low temperatures and icy winds are also predicted. NSW and Victoria's ski slopes are forecast to receive a dump of snow, with poor conditions for snow sports, as they officially open this weekend, amid wet and icy weather hitting parts of southern and eastern Australia. Polar air from sub-Antarctic waters is expected to bring days of below-average temperatures for the country's south as many Australians mark the King's birthday long weekend. Snow is expected to fall for around four days in alpine regions and be widespread across central Victoria and NSW, potentially falling in the Blue Mountains, Orange, and Canberra as well. Patch Clapp, community information officer at the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM), said snowfall would start from Friday. "Over the course of Friday to Tuesday, at least 20 to 30 centimetres of snow should accumulate at the alpine resorts for the first weekend of the snow season, with snow possible generally every day from Friday to Tuesday," he said. "Weather conditions over the weekend will not be great for snow sports. Successive cold fronts and a low-pressure system will lead to a wet and windy long weekend," Clapp said. While Friday will feel chillier after a warm autumn, the main cold front is expected to arrive on Saturday night and sweep across parts of South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, and NSW, the BoM said. On Sunday, maximum temperatures are expected to remain in the single digits — Melbourne will reach a top of about 9 degrees, with high winds making the 'feels like' temperature even lower. After an exceptionally dry 12 months creating difficult drought conditions, south-west Victoria is forecast to receive between 25 and 50mm of rain between Saturday and Tuesday. Parts of southern South Australia can also expect rain after some of the driest conditions on record. Adelaide is expected to receive its heaviest rainfall since 2023, with up to 40mm potentially falling. The BoM has issued warnings for strong north-westerly winds ahead of the approaching cold front and could reissue warnings for areas of the coast and ranges when the storm moves up. Gusts could exceed 100km/h near the South Australia-Victoria border.
