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The Met Office warned of more snow and icy conditions across Britain on Wednesday, with falling temperatures expected make it the chilliest day of the week.
Motorists were urged to be extra careful on the roads, with police in North Yorkshire warning of “incredibly bad driving conditions” overnight.
The wintry conditions were ealso expected to cause some disruption to rush-hour rail services, and several schools were closed in Buckinghamshire because of the snow.
Northern parts of the UK woke up to temperatures of -2C and in Braemar, Aberdeenshire, the overnight temperature dropped to -10.2C.
Temperatures were set to climb to only 3C or 4C across much of the country in the afternoon. While coastal regions were warned to expect more snow and sleet showers throughout the day, most of the inland snow was restricted to hilly areas.
Snow and icy conditions hit the UK – Winter weather in pictures
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Passengers on a Merseyrail train were stuck on board for more than two hours after it broke down, the Liverpool Echo reported.
About 19 passengers had to walk along the tracks between Hillside and Ainsdale after their train broke down – having had to go back on itself when it got stuck behind another broken-down train, passenger Will Reed told the paper.
On Friday forecasters expect it to be breezy, “often cloudy but milder”, according to the Met Office, with fog in hilly areas and patchy rain. On Saturday the wind will get stronger and heavy rain is expected. Sunday will be colder and brighter, though windy and with some wintry showers.
Winter was due to continue next week, the Met Office said.
On its website, meteorologists said that on Monday, “cold and showery conditions are expected” potentially accompanied by snow, moving eastward across the country; Tuesday is expected to be similar.
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Forecasters added: “Beyond there, the broad signal is for the unsettled period of the weather to continue, with further bands of rain and hill snow moving east or southeast across the UK, interspersed with brighter showery interludes.
“Snow remains a risk, mostly in the north, but perhaps further south too, and frosts could be quite widespread.
“There is still a chance that even colder conditions may develop later in the period with winds swinging round to the east or northeast, bringing an increased possibility of snow.”
Wednesday is set to be the coldest day so far this week. Northern parts of the country woke up to temperatures of -2C. In Braemar, Aberdeenshire, the overnight temperature dropped to -10.2C.
Temperatures will climb to only 3C or 4C across much of the country this afternoon, before plummeting again overnight into Thursday morning.
In Buckinghamshire, several schools have been closed for the day because of the snow and icy conditions. Others are set to open later as a result of the weather. In Sutherland, northern Scotland, schools in Kinlochbervie and Durness were also reportedly closed.
Rush-hour commuters saw some journeys disrupted due to the freezing weather.
Greater Anglia Rail told passengers that trains would run with speed restrictions between Hackney Downs and Cambridge, and that services could be cancelled, delayed by up to 15 minutes or revised.
Merseyrail said that ice had prevented electricity from reaching the trains; as a result services between between Aintree and Ormskirk, Hooton and Ellesmere Port, and Hooton and Chester were cancelled.
While other Merseyrail lines are running, passengers have been warned to expect severe delays and cancellations.
Snow has fallen across the country, giving photographers a chance to capture beautiful wintry images.
One member of Virgin Trains staff even urged passengers to look out of their windows to admire the scenes "before we all get cheesed off with it", according to BBC presenter Clare Balding.
Here are a few photos taken during the cold weather.
Snow covers the Killhope lead mining museum in County Durham (Owen Humphreys/PA)
A fresh covering of snow covers the summit of Beinn Ruadh near Dunoon, Argyll and Bute (Jane Barlow/PA)
The freezing weather is not keeping people from getting outdoors.
Sonya Moorhead and Jamima Latimer, who swim in "wild" areas like rivers, lakes and the sea, visited Gaddings Dam near Todmorden, West Yorkshire, for a charity swim.
Sonya Moorhead and Jamima Latimer walk through the snow before taking a dip for charity (REUTERS/Phil Noble)
Some relief from the cold will come towards the end of the week for those who are struggling with low temperatures, the Met Office has said, but forecasters warned a chill will return by the weekend.
A man walks his dog through the park as some areas of the United Kingdom see the first snow of the year, on January 23, 2019 in High Wycombe (Leon Neal/Getty)
Passengers on a Merseyrail train were stuck on board for more than two hours after it broke down, the Liverpool Echoreports.
About 19 passengers had to walk along the tracks between Hillside and Ainsdale after their train broke down - having had to go back on itself when it got stuck behind another broken-down train, passenger Will Reed told the paper.
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