Thousands stranded on highways due to snow

ISTANBUL

Motorists bide their time in traffic between Akhisar and Balıkesir as snow hampers highways in western Turkey.

Snow dominated Turkey’s agenda on the last day of the year, as thousands were stranded on roads that were blocked due to heavy snowfall while schools in some provinces were canceled for the day.

Traffic on the roads between Istanbul and İzmir, Bursa and Ankara, and Afyonkarahisar Kütahya and Uşak stopped due to snowfall, although the bottlenecks were compounded by drivers who did not have the necessary tire equipment against the snow and the increased number of cars on the roads, which was due to the extension of the official holiday to four days for public workers.

Many people became stuck inside their cars on the blocked roads, while members of Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) distributed food and beverages to drivers who were stuck in traffic on roads passing through Turkey’s Kütahya province.  

Schools in Bursa, Eskişehir, Çanakkale and Kastamonu were suspended for a day.