Drivers on the A5223 ibn Telford this morning. Picture from Star reader Paul Heath.

Parts of Shropshire were gridlocked today as fresh snowfall caused chaos on the roads.

Hazardous driving conditions led to a spate of crashes across the county which closed roads and brought traffic to a standstill. A serious smash on the M54 led to long tailbacks on the westbound carriageway between Shifnal and Telford. And the A458 Bridgnorth to Shrewsbury road was closed at Harley Bank after vehicles became stuck.

Many motorists claimed that roads had not been treated, although council chiefs insisted the gritters had been out overnight.

The smash on the M54 caused long delays for motorists after a Nissan car collided with an articulated lorry and was then spun into the path of another lorry just after 6.30am.

A woman in the Nissan was cut from the wreckage by firefighters and taken on a spinal board by ambulance to the Princess Royal Hospital in Telford. Two lanes of the westbound carriageway were closed off as emergency services dealt with the incident.

Police were called to reports of a crash on the A458 at Harley Bank just after 6.40am but it turned out to be a lorry and two other vehicles that had become stuck. The road was closed just after 7am for about half an hour until vehicles were able to get through. Vehicles were also reported to have crashed in Quatt and near Minsterley.

Telford & Wrekin Council said salt lorries were out between 12.30am and 4am today. Council spokesman Nigel Newman said: “We are still under the directive from Government to reduce the amount of salt we use, however, which means we are using a slightly less concentrated salt mix than we normally would.”

And Paul Smart, Shropshire Council’s programme and contracts manager, said: “We are closely monitoring salt supplies. We would like to reassure people that we are still able to fulfil our commitment to grit our defined network which includes all A and B roads and other high risk sites. Our gritters have been out across the county over the weekend treating the roads.”

Fresh snowfall was forecast to hit parts of Britain again today with up to 5cm expected in northern and western Wales and the north of Scotland, with lighter flurries elsewhere.

It comes as a report today said the cost of last month’s big freeze on households topped £2 billion and millions of homes were uninsured.