A snowstorm brought rush-hour traffic to a standstill in a major Highland town yesterday, with a weather warning still in place for this morning.
The conditions caused chaos throughout Argyll and the Highlands as roads and schools were closed across the area.
Schools as far north as Durness and Kinlochbervie were shut while eight in Argyll and Bute were closed.
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Oban was inaccessible between 8-10am after HGVs got stuck in the snow at both entrances to the town.
One lorry was attempting to negotiate the Bealach An Righ hill on the A85 trunk road heading out of town when it slid back down and blocked both carriageways.
Another became stuck in a similar manner on the A816 Oban to Lochgilphead road at the opposite entrance to town, blocking that side.
The A82 Glasgow to Inverness road was also blocked at Glencoe after three lorries began experiencing difficulty due to the weather conditions.
The road was closed in both directions after the HGVs collided into a road barrier.
It meant Glencoe Ski Centre didn’t open until 11am as staff had to take a diversion.
Meanwhile, snow and minor accidents blocked the A83 between Lochgilphead and Inveraray and at the Rest and Be Thankful.
Oban Police Inspector Mark Stephens said: “Traffic was stuck all around Oban with long queues of traffic at both ends of the town. As a result, the town centre was very quiet this morning.
“A car slipped off the road at Pennyfuir on the A85, another vehicle slipped into a bin lorry which was stationary and two HGVs got stuck on either side of Oban. No-one was injured as a result of the accidents.
“Motorists should take care in the conditions and give themselves plenty of time for journeys.”
Moleigh landfill site in Oban remained closed for several hours as the roads around it were impassable.
Ferry services also experienced disruption with routes between Oban and Barra, Coll and Tiree affected. There were also delays on the Uig to Lochaddy and Mallaig to Lochboisdale routes.
Stornoway Airport warned of possible delays due to snow. The morning flight to Benbecula was cancelled and flights to Glasgow and Edinburgh were delayed.
The Met Office expected the treacherous conditions to continue until 11am today.
Forecasters were predicting the coldest night of the winter so far last night with temperatures expected to plummet to -12C in Braemar.
