London’s travel and transportation ground to a halt Monday after the city was pummeled by the worst snowstorm in 18 years.

Heathrow has canceled at least 650 flights and shut down one of its two runways.

There were other delays and cancellations at Gatwick, Luton and Stansted airports, and London City Airport was completely shut down.

Outside of the London area, Birmingham International has some runway closures, and Leeds Bradford is experiencing delays. In Scotland, there are delays and cancellation in services to England from Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen airports.

The only airline issue to date is a Cyprus Airways flight arriving at Heathrow from Larnaca, which skidded off the taxiway onto a grassy area. There were no injuries.

The British Highways Agency has issued a warning that drivers in southeast of England should think twice about hitting the road. Salt spreaders and snow blowers have already been used extensively, but according to London Mayor Boris Johnson, the city is lacking in snowplows.

London’s subway system was also affected as many of the above-ground tracks were covered in snow or ice and transit employees had a difficult time getting to work.  Buses were held back as road conditions proved too dangerous for travel.

The National Rail Enquiries Web site crashed after a huge influx of visitors, but is now up and running with detailed information on which lines have been suspended or are running on limited service, or are expecting major delays.

There are major delays on domestic commuter services in the south of England, including the London Overground, National Express East Anglia/Stansted Express, Southern/Gatwick Express, and Virgin Trains.

According to the UK’s Met Office, heavy snow and sleet will continue to affect many parts of England, with snow spreading from the southeast to more northern areas this afternoon and evening. Conditions will remain icy in the southeast. As much as 11 inches of snow is expected in higher elevations and sleet and slush will likely cover the lower areas.

It’s estimated that the storm is going to cost Britain upwards of $2 billion.

Related links: MSNBC, The Guardian, CNN, The Independent (UK), UK Rail System

By Sarika Chawla for PeterGreenberg.com.

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