The treacherous winter driving conditions across the Lower Mainland turned tragic Wednesday, with two deaths in two single-vehicle accidents being attributed to the ice and snow.

Ridge Meadows RCMP reported that the separate accidents happened just minutes apart in Pitt Meadows and Maple Ridge.

"Weather is definitely a factor in both of these tragic incidents." said Sergeant Roland Pierschke, a Watch Commander with Ridge Meadows RCMP.

The first crash was reported at 11:18 a.m. on Old Dewdney Trunk Road, at Rippington Road, in Pitt Meadows.

A 50-year-old man was pronounced dead at Royal Columbian Hospital after his car, which was travelling westbound, slid across the eastbound lane and into a water-filled ditch.

The second occurred at 11:21 a.m. on 210 Street and 132 Avenue in Maple Ridge. A northbound car slid off the road into another ditch.

The 59-year-old male driver was pronounced dead at Ridge Meadows Hospital.

Highway closure in Fraser Valley

There were traffic problems all around the south coast on Wednesday, with the Fraser Valley hit especially badly by whiteout conditions and heavy winds.

Highway 1 was littered with signs that had been blown down and vehicles that had slid off the road.

The highway was closed for two hours after a multi-vehicle crash east of Chilliwack involving semi-trailer trucks and a passenger bus.

The driver of the bus suffered minor injuries.

One of the passengers on bus, Andrew Ng, said he could see the accident before it happened.

"I was very terrified. I was right behind the driver," he said.

"Everyone was screaming and then the bus started moving," said another passenger, Laila Amarir .

One couple on the bus had just gotten married.

"We are on our honeymoon. This is going to be a memorable experience for us," said Celia Koh.

Surveying the highway, tow truck driver Jim Schindle said many people rarely plan for the bad weather before it hits.

"This is kind of a mess. Nobody is prepared for it," he said. "If they'd slow down, they wouldn't have this problem."

Highway 1 was closed in both directions between Abbotsford and Chilliwack just before 6 p.m. Wednesday due to blowing snow and poor visibility. Detours are in place.

A blizzard warning was put in place for the Fraser Valley for Wednesday night.

Vancouver traffic moving slowly

In Greater Vancouver, transit buses were running behind schedule, especially for routes on higher elevations.

The Skytrain ran all night into Wednesday to keep the tracks clear, and reported few problems throughout Wednesday, apart from many more passengers than usual.

Fourteen salt trucks are expected to be out all night to cover the city's streets in salt in time for Thursday's commute, and the City of Vancouver was sending all snowploughs out to keep the roads clear.

A spokesperson for Vancouver International Airport said there would be 15 minute to hour-long delays in flights Wednesday due to de-icing. They asked passengers to check their website for up-to-date information.

Vancouver Island gets even more snow

It was Campbell River's turn to get a blast of winter, with the airport reporting 17 cm of snow and a windchill of -17 overnight.

Parksville and Nanaimo also took another hit of snow, with more expected to come.

Snow is expected to continue to fall around southern B.C. over the next 24 hours, and temperatures were due fall further.

Police want the public to check conditions before driving and are advising people not to drive at all unless absolutely necessary.

With reports from CTV British Columbia's Michele Brunoro, Lisa Rossington and Jim Beatty.