Snow Disrupts Trains, Leads to Flight Cancelations in France

March 12 (Bloomberg) -- France, like much of Europe, woke up to a blanket of snow this morning, with the precipitation disrupting train services, canceling flights and stranding vehicles on highways.

The French Aviation Authority said it has asked Paris airports Charles de Gaulle and Orly to cut the number of their flights by 25 percent. The national rail service, SNCF, asked people to avoid traveling to Paris. There were delays and canceled services on several lines in the French capital’s subway system.

“Because of unfavorable weather conditions, SNCF recommends that travelers avoid trying to get to Paris this morning,” it said in a statement. The company’s suburban train service is “severely disrupted,” it said.

Meteo France, the country’s weather service, has placed 29 districts in northern France on “orange” alert, saying it expects average snowfall in the region of between 5 and 15 centimeters.

All high-speed rail services to and from the the northeastern city of Lille were halted this morning. Additionally, about 600 vehicles were blocked on highway A16 in the Nord Pas-de-Calais region north of Paris last night, with 100 still stranded, Agence France-Presse reported.