First snow in Budapest (2012)

[el-amigo]

Sorry for bothering with this topic, but I felt that I have to share it with you.
Hungary is a temperate country, it was 18-20 degrees Celsius last week. It's autumn.
Currently it is 2 degrees Celsius, and we got our first snow in the capital city, Budapest.

The public transport almost stopped, because of 0,5cm snow!!!
Everyone is running circles like headless chickens, it is a total mess.

Does it happen in other countries too when it's snowing?

[Winnie]

LOL, yep! When I travelled home yesterday the weather was much the same, there had been a small snowfall the day before.

[crashdive123]

When I moved from Seattle to North Florida in 1989 it snowed that year. Most of the long time residents had never seen snow, so not only was it a treat to see it, it also offered up new challenges (driving). We often take for granted things that we do and experience on a regular basis. Events like that serve as a stark reminder that we all have different life experiences that we draw from.

[el-amigo]

But I don't understand why should a small amount of snow totally paralyze a city's public transport?
It was not a present, we knew about the coming snow since Saturday evening.
I guess, for example in London you can travel from A to B without a problem during a snow storm.

[jfeatherjohn]

Yes, it happens in temperate climates, because fopks don't have the experience moving about, and their nervousness makes it worse.
Even mass transit can be affected, because busses and trains have drivers who don't have experience with snow, and it worries them.
A big rain in Phoenix, Arizona can cause chaos.
Experience isn't always a huge advantage, as you can still be dodging inexperienced drivers, including bus drivers.
Be safe.

[Winnie]

But I don't understand why should a small amount of snow totally paralyze a city's public transport?
It was not a present, we knew about the coming snow since Saturday evening.
I guess, for example in London you can travel from A to B without a problem during a snow storm.

Ha, nope. It's even been known for the whole of the city transport system to stop due to an inch of snow! So don't feel so bad. This will be my first year in town in winter, it will be interesting to see how the town reacts.

[hunter63]

Sounds like Shreveport, La.....any snow or they really get more ice....rain then freezing.....Everything shuts down.

News said last year the "Both" plow/salter trucks were out.......

[el-amigo]

We have restrictions about salt. We only allowed to use sand even in our ground.