shutterstock-519754306

Snow and icy conditions in Paris: what to expect this Wednesday, January 7

undefined undefined 5 janvier 2026 undefined 18h00

undefined undefined 7 janvier 2026 undefined 09h44

The Editor

© Ekaterina Pokrovsky / Shutterstock

Since Monday, January 5th, the entire Île-de-France region has been under a freezing rain and snow orange alert. For good reason, as snowflakes have been falling non-stop since mid-afternoon, covering the whole capital in a beautiful white blanket. The only hiccup? Public transport is facing significant disruptions.

Paris, under the snow, has something a little magical about it. For a few moments, time slows down, silence takes over, and Parisians rediscover their childhood spirit, indulging in snowball fights and building snowmen. However, it also brings along its share of inconveniences, especially on the roads and rails of the capital.

Wednesday, January 7

Major disruptions in Île-de-France

On the transportation side, it's a big halt for the buses. With the arrival of the snowflakes, RATP has suspended all bus traffic in Île-de-France. On the side of the intra-city railway network, things are a bit chaotic. On all lines, a warning message indicates that traffic is disrupted across all lines due to weather conditions. Some lines are, however, a bit more affected than others, even if often...

The reasons mentioned are not related to snow. So, only line 6, which is above ground for a large part of its route, is experiencing disruptions directly linked to the weather. However, lines 5, 7bis, 9, and 11 are also still marked in orange. But the situation is changing quickly, and we are not safe from new announcements in the next few hours.

This morning, the Paris region woke up to a giant parking lot. At exactly 10 a.m., the Sytadin website reported nearly 950 kilometers of traffic jams in Île-de-France. Yes, almost 1,000 km of slowdowns, which is more than double that of a regular morning. Paris is at a standstill, and its residents are too.

Tuesday, January 6

Travel is not recommended for Wednesday

Dear Parisians, if you have the chance to stay at home, now's the time to enjoy it without any guilt. Given the new freezing rain and snow expected for Wednesday morning (which could be much more significant thanFirst, the Minister of Transport, Philippe Tabarot, advises to avoid traveling in Île-de-France “as much as possible.” The goal is simple: to spare us a repeat of Monday's traffic nightmare, where traffic jams set all records around Paris.

In the meantime, on the public transport side: 85% of the IDFM network was operational around 2 PM, despite a few fussy bus lines.

The minister also announced that many flights will be canceled on Wednesday morning at the Paris airports. There's a need to clear snow from the runways and de-ice the planes. This affects about 40% of flights at Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle (between 9 AM and 2 PM) and 25% at Orly (between 6 AM and 1 PM).

If you can, work from home in the warmth and let the white coat settle in quietly.


Monday, January 5

Public transport in a pickle

We had hoped for it at Christmas, but it let us down. We had to wait for the new year for the snow to finally decide to show up.

pointed its little nose once again. In fact, more than twice! So much so that at 4:15 PM, about an hour after the rain started, the RATP made the surprising decision to suspend the operation of all buses across Île-de-France.

A situation that has certainly triggered reactions from some users who rely on this mode of transport to get home, given the few centimeters visible for now. They are not alone, as the RER lines, especially A and B, are also heavily disrupted by the bad weather. And this isn't expected to stop here, as the Paris transport authority has already announced that the night bus services will also be affected throughout the night.


Difficulties in getting around

Beyond public transport, the current weather is impacting all modes of transportation, as the roads have become much less passable and safe, causing several hundred kilometers of traffic jams across Île-de-France. Nearly 1000 are expected, to be precise.

this is a record level for the capital. In addition, the speed is limited to 80 km/h for everyone. On the aerial side, traffic has also been reduced by 15% at the airports in Paris. So yes, it’s a bit restrictive, we can agree on that. But in the meantime, let’s not forget that all of this is for safety reasons, and that  Paris in the snow is quite beautiful, isn’t it?