Motorists have been advised to drive with extreme care tonight and gardaí have repeated their appeal to the public not to take any unnecessary journeys as freezing conditions continue to affect much of the country.
Met Éireann has forecast that the freezing temperatures of recent nights will continue tonight, with ice replacing snow as the biggest hazard.
The agency has issued a weather warning forecasting widespread fog tonight. Temperatures are expected to drop as low as minus eight degrees tonight and fog is expected to become dense and turn into freezing fog in places.
Atlantic coastal areas may escape the worst of the cold weather but widespread ice is forecast for the rest of the country.
A sharp to severe ground frost has been forecast for tonight with further isolated rain or hail showers predicted near coasts of the north and west.
Speaking earlier today, Met Éireann’s head of forecasting Gerard Fleming warned that packed ice will be "very, very slow to thaw".
He said the country may see overnight temperatures of -6 or -7 degrees next week but increased temperatures should bring an 'accelerated thaw' from Wednesday onwards, Mr Fleming told RTÉ's Marian Finucane radio show.
The public has been asked to keep in contact with elderly neighbours, particularly those living alone.
Dublin City Council issued an update this afternoon calling on the public to be aware of
the dangers posed by large amounts of snow deposited on roofs.
A moderate thaw over the last 24 hours has caused heavy volumes of snow to slide of roofs. This presents a potential hazard and people should avoid standing or walking directly under roofs. The council extended the advice to smokers standing outside pubs, restaurants and other buildings.
The Civil Defence and Wicklow Mountain Rescue were called to
Three Rock Mountain where a radio transmitter which serves Dublin Bus had broken down.
Motorists in Munster, Connaught and the Midlands. Munster, Connaught and the Midlands have being advised to drive with extreme care due to black ice.
Road temperatures were well below zero on a number of routes this morning with Monaghan recording temperatures as low as -4.2°C on the N2, AA Roadwatch reported.
Most Bus Éireann services around the country are operating as per normal with some delays and cancellations in affected areas. Customers are advised to contact Bus Éireann for details.
Dublin Airport is fully operational this evening and snow and ice clearing teams are on stand-by should weather conditions disimprove.
There are some minor delays to the flight schedule at Dublin Airport and passengers are advised to consult with their airline's website before going to the airport.
The Dublin Airport Authority warned disruption to flight schedules could occur should weather conditions deteriorate further. Some flights have been affected by the air traffic strike in Spain.
Significant delays were caused to trains leaving Heuston this morning after a mechanical fault developed on the 7.30am train from Heuston to Galway near Adamstown.
The fault has since been rectified and delays have eased.
Rail services are expected to continue operating this evening throughout the network across Intercity, Dart and commuter routes except the M3 Parkway to Clonsilla.
Affected travelers are advised to use Dublin Bus or Bus Éireann scheduled services
Iarnród Éireann warned of minor delays due to the weather but said more significant delays could occur if conditions deteriorate.
Recent conditions have been compared to the big freeze of last winter and those of the winters of 1947/48, 1962/63 and 1978/79.
There will be an east-west split, with the eastern half of the country experiencing day-time highs of only three degrees and temperatures as low as -8 at night, although snow will not be as prevalent as recently.
It is expected that temperatures in the east will rise above freezing for only a couple of hours each day.
However, a thaw, which has already set in along the Atlantic seaboard, is expected to continue in the west, with temperatures staying above freezing for the week.
The midlands, northwest and southwest were the worst-affected areas yesterday, as snow showers continued to sweep across the country, although the situation has improved in Dublin, where rain fell this morning.
Limerick received its first significant snowfalls and there were reports of widespread black ice in the midlands.
Transport services operated to near full capacity yesterday and the State’s airports remained open, although there were delays to some flights.
National director of fire and emergency management Seán Hogan warned that driver fatigue was setting in among the 200 workers who have been gritting the roads, an operation which is being carried out around the clock.
Dublin City Council engineer Michael Phillips said they would continue to try to clear as many footpaths as possible over the weekend.
“We will have on the street just about everybody who can carry a shovel to try and clear as much of it as possible,” he said.
The business group Ibec estimates that a two-week freeze will cost the economy an estimated €920 million, based on a loss of retail sales of €130 million a week, loss to other service businesses of €200 million and a €130 million loss of production in manufacturing, although much of this will be recovered when the weather improves.
The Department of Social Protection has extended the period for which those in receipt of the State pension, jobseeker’s payment, the one-parent family payment and child benefit can collect their money from local post offices.