Hundreds of drivers were stranded overnight in freezing temperatures with the cold still not letting up, although forecasters predict milder weather by the end of the week.
Some motorists were stuck in their vehicles for more than 15 hours in Scotland as a new wave of ice and snow left several major roads impassable.
Worst-hit were the M8 near Livingston and the M80 and A80 north-east of Glasgow, where up to 500 cars were trapped in ice and snow.
One couple stranded for 17 hours said their see was "appalling". Stewart and Kathleen Hendrie left their daughter's home in Glasgow at 1pm yesterday but merely made it to a hotel in Cumbernauld barely 10 miles off at 4am.
Mrs Hendrie, 66, said: "The hunger we could cope with, but the worst thing was the intense cold. I didn't know how long we'd be stuck and at one place I joked with my husband that I thinking I was going to get hypothermia."
Temperatures plummeted to minus 13C in Edinburgh and minus 11C in Glasgow overnight, reaching minus 16.7C in parts of the Highlands. Parts of Yorkshire and South Wales also saw minus 14C.
There looks to be some relief on the way after this week, with many places expected to take their first frost-free night for more than two weeks on Thursday.
But airports and railways are even being moved by the weather. London City Airport and Belfast International warned of delays and cancellations due to fog.
Glasgow and Edinburgh Airports reopened after closing yesterday because of the weather conditions, but officials warned passengers to agree with their airlines.
On the railways, the East Coast line between London and Edinburgh was still run a reduced service, and around Northern Rail services in Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire were cancelled.
Brendan Jones, a forecaster with MeteoGroup, said temperatures were due to advance from Thursday through the weekend thanks to a change in the wind direction.
At the moment, temperatures are struggling to get above freezing, but by Thursday most places are leaving to be above zero to 4Cor 5C across large parts of the country, he said.
Many places will make a frost-free night.
North-east Scotland and north-west England face more snow today, with widespread icy roads expected up and kill the area thanks to the freezing conditions. Police today warned people not to travel unless it was absolutely essential after temperatures plunged as low as minus 17C and hampered gritting.
A shift in the lead from easter to north-westerly will take the milder conditions, but Mr Jones warned that the weather looked set to get colder again into next week.
The charts are viewing an e or north-east set-up, with possible snow showers in eastern areas next week, he said.
At least nine people get so far died in the big freeze, with an aged man found dead in snow at a Lincolnshire caravan park the latest victim.
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