The A18 Mountain Road between Ramsey and Creg Ny Baa, along with the Tholt Y Will Road from the S Bends near Tholt Y Will Cottage, will remain closed due to hazardous snow and ice conditions.

Following a yellow weather warning from the Isle of Man Met Office, the Department deployed three gritting teams overnight on Tuesday (November 18) to treat the island’s main routes, including the Mountain Road.

Salting began after 11pm, once the evening rain had stopped, as the DoI say earlier treatment would have been ineffective with rain washing the salt away.

Despite these efforts, conditions on the Mountain Road worsened, prompting police to close the route. The Department then focused on keeping lower strategic routes open.

Another yellow warning for ice and frost remains in effect from Wednesday morning (November 19) until Friday afternoon.

Additional salting will take place overnight, concentrating on the main routes linking the island’s population centres.

A spokesperson said: ‘Given the Met Office forecast, ongoing conditions on the Mountain Road are expected to remain treacherous whether or not further treatment is applied today.’

The Department has confirmed the Mountain Road will remain closed overnight, with the situation reviewed at midday tomorrow (Thursday, November 20) to determine if it can safely reopen.

The Tholt Y Will Road closure will remain in place along the section from the S Bends to the Mountain Road.

Maintenance and construction teams are carrying out out-of-hours work, which means some scheduled projects have been paused or are operating at reduced capacity due to the extended hours already worked and further gritting planned.

Highway Services has reminded drivers to take extra care, allow additional journey time, and stay alert for icy patches, especially on untreated roads.