Heavy snowfall is causing problems in the east of the county as up to 10cm fell in some places.

Commuters faced a treacherous trip into work with many roads covered in ice and snow and disruption on the trains.

Roads:

Parts of the M20 were static on Thursday morning with the main problems between junctions 11 to Hythe and 13 to Folkestone. Traffic is now moving slowly and there are two lanes open in parts.

Police spokesman Rosy Alexander said there had been no serious accidents but some roads have been closed or are impassable. "People in the east and south of Kent are advised not to travel unless absolutely necessary," she said.

Kentish Express news editor Alastair Irvine drove down to Ashford from Bromley early this morning and found the going tough on the M20.

He said: "It was such a contrast. There was no snow to speak of until a couple of miles after the Lenham services, then it started getting really icy.

"The snow had compacted on the inside lane and it was like driving over a cobbled street. I was doing 20mph most of the way. It took nearly an hour from the services to Ashford town centre, a journey that would normally only take about 20 minutes."

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Video: Round-up of snow across the east of the county

The A20 is also extremely slow going with snow from Folkestone to the Limekiln Roundabout in Dover.

The Faversham Road down to the town was frequently blocked with stranded cars many people simply abandoning them.

The A28 Canterbury Road is particularly treacherous with black ice causing many motorists to skid or become stuck when forced to stop. Willesborough Road is also slow going.

In Thanet, the worst affected routes included the A299 Thanet Way, the B2050 Manston Road and Manston Court Road.

Hazardous driving conditions were also reporterd on the A256 Haine Road, with long delays on the A254 Ramsgate Road near the QEQM hospital, Margate.

Trains and cross-Channel services:

Several Southeastern trains between Kent and London have been cancelled or delayed.

Southeastern spokesman Sarah Boundy said: "We had one failed train due to the conditions but services are continuing to run.

Audio: Southeastern's >Sarah Boundy talks about the situation on the trains

"However, the services are subject to cancellation and we appreciate that a lot of people have had difficult journeys."

~ Check the latest train information

KM Group reporter Tricia Jamieson spent three hours trying to get to work from River, near Dover, to Ashford before giving up.

She said: "My car was buried under about six inches of snow and all roads in and out of the village were impassable as we are in a valley.

"Walking to our local station, Kearsney, the snow was nearly over the top of my Wellington boots.

"Once we got to Dover Priory I was first told there might not be any trains at all, then that ones to Ashford were being routed via Thanet, which would have added time to the journey."

Eurotunnel cancelled all services at Folkestone because of the weather earlier, however they had resumed by 1pm.

Delays of up to two hours were being reported at the Port of Dover early on Thursday morning.

Kent Police are advising drivers in southern and eastern Kent not to travel unless it is absolutely necessary and to allow extra time for any journeys they do make.

~ Check road information on the Highways Agency website >>>

~ Check Southeastern's website >>>

~ Get the latest weather forecast for the region >>>

More than 150 schools have been closed and pharmaceutical giant Pfizer has closed its Sandwich site, which employs around 3,000 people. Employees received an automated message on their mobile and home phones at around 6am.

Thanet District Council was forced to abandon all waste and recycling collections because the treacherous conditions prevented its fleet of refuse trucks from taking to the roads.

Canterbury Crown Court abandoned proceedings for the day.

Up to 10cm of snow have fallen in some places, but the Met Office has said that the worst should be over.

It will continue to be cold throughout the week, but they are not currently forecasting any more significant snowfalls.

Tune into your local kmfm station for the latest travel updates.