Editor's note: Some snowfall warnings and weather statements were extended to Tuesday and Wednesday. Latest info here.
Just hours after at least 20 vehicles were involved in collisions on icy streets, another blast of winter weather is expected to plague the Lower Mainland.
Icy conditions were blamed for several crashes on Highway 1 near the Cape Horn interchange during the Monday morning commute. Streets were so bad at one point that Coquitlam Mounties warned even emergency vehicles and tow trucks were having trouble.
The slippery conditions were created by snow and near-freezing temperatures, leaving a slick layer of ice across the roads in affected areas. Environment Canada has blamed the blast of snow that started Sunday on a cold, moist and unstable airflow that originated over the Gulf of Alaska.
And the messy commute likely won't be the last for residents of the Lower Mainland and parts of Vancouver Island.
The Fraser Valley and Metro Vancouver fall under a snowfall warning issued Monday afternoon, with as much as 10 centimetres of snowfall in the forecast for Monday night and Tuesday morning. The snow is expected to start late Monday and continue to Tuesday morning, which may mean drivers will face slippery streets a second morning in a row.
Environment Canada warns the heaviest snow will fall over high elevations, hitting the regions in bands. The actual amounts of snowfall will vary, and lower elevations are more likely to see rain mixed with snow.
High elevations will see between five and 10 centimetres, while lower-lying areas may only see two to four centimetres of snow, the weather agency said. The snow is expected to change over to rain late Tuesday morning as temperatures rise.
In areas that fall under the warning, drivers are warned there's a risk of reduced visibility.
"Slow down, watch for taillights ahead and be prepared to stop," the snowfall warning said.
While the warning only applies to two parts of the South Coast, other parts of the province fall under special weather statements. The statements have been issued for the Central Coast, North Coast, Haida Gwaii, Howe Sound, Sunshine Coast and north, inland and east Vancouver Island.
Individual forecasts vary, but all statements stem from the same unstable flow of air bringing bands of snow across the province. The areas that fall under special weather statements can expect between two and four centimetres of snow to fall Monday night, and another two to four on Tuesday.
Later in the week, a high pressure system will build over the B.C. Interior, sending strong winds and drier weather to the areas covered by statements and warnings, Environment Canada says.
The warnings come at the same time as the Transportation Investment Corporation released the amount of money its spent clearing cables on the Port Mann Bridge this winter.
The bridge's 288 cables are cleared by collars, which are dropped from its pillars when sensors determine there's enough snow built up. The collars then slide down the cables, knocking the snow off. The collars are used to prevent "ice bombs" or "slush bombs" from building up and then dropping onto vehicles below.
With an unusually snowy season, the cost this year was about $4 million, TI Corp. said. The sensors are being relocated so they aren't damaged by the collars, and the cost of that project is $150,000.
Environment Canada said Vancouver has had twice the amount of snow this season compared to the average winter, but that this is only the 18th snowiest on record.
But researchers say all the snow will one day be a thing of the past, and that Metro Vancouver's climate will eventually look a lot more like that of California.
"We do expect by 2050 Metro Vancouver to have summer temperatures three degrees warmer. That happens to match up with what San Diego is like now," said Jeff Carmichael, Metro Vancouver's division manager of utility research and innovation. The study suggests the South Coast will experience far warmer and drier summers and milder, rainier winters in the decades ahead.
With reports from CTV Vancouver's Penny Daflos and Scott Roberts
