The freezing conditions will continue over the weekend after the Met Office placed yellow weather warnings for ice across the majority of the country.
The UK has been battered by Storm Larisa whose blizzards caused traffic chaos on rail and road on Thursday and Friday and is likely to carry on heading into the weekend.
It comes after drivers were urged to get behind the wheel only if necessary, with some motorists left stranded due to heavy snowfall.
Heavy snowfall left drivers stranded for more than seven hours on the M62 in Greater Manchester and Yorkshire on Thursday night going into Friday morning.
National Highways North West estimated that at one point congestion on the eastbound carriageway between Rochdale and Saddleworth stretched to around eight miles.
Emergency services have also rescued eight people who were trapped in heavy snowfall for more than 12 hours in Staffordshire.
Temperatures in rural areas across the UK dropped as low as minus 10C overnight on Friday across the UK, with more snow expected on higher ground across Saturday and Sunday.
Andrew Page-Dove, of National Highways, said weather conditions will deteriorate on Friday night and has issued a warning to any drivers who get behind the wheel.
He said: “We’ve got some very cold weather overnight. We’ve got the risk of potentially freezing rain and then more snow tomorrow.
"So the conditions are actually going to get worse rather than better. But we will be continuously out there treating the roads and our intention is to keep the M62 open.
"We have well-rehearsed plans which we execute every time we have these types of events. It is purely the combination of volume of traffic and (drivers) maybe not being as well prepared for the conditions."
Public transport has also been affected, with Network Rail saying multiple fallen trees had blocked lines between Manchester and Sheffield, meaning no trains could run.
Train operators TransPennine Express and Northern were affected, with many services cancelled, and Merseyrail, which runs services in Merseyside and surrounding areas, delayed the start of its operations on Friday.
Met Office meteorologist Matthew Box said rain, sleet and snow would push north-eastwards across the country over the weekend, likely falling on the hills and mountains of the Pennines, the Cumbrian vales and some parts of Scotland.
A warning for snow remains in place for much of Scotland, where some rural glens hit lows of -15C overnight, with another snow and ice warning issued for northern England on Saturday and another covering parts of Scotland and the north of England on Sunday.
South West England is the only region on the Met Office's website not to have a yellow weather warning in place for Saturday with sunnier spells set to hit the region and Wales later on Sunday.
UK 5 day weather forecast
Saturday:
Cloud and rain spreading northeast, turning to snow over high ground of the west, and to low-levels further north during the evening. Cold; though becoming much milder for the west/southwest.
Outlook for Sunday to Tuesday:
Rain pushing northeast Sunday, perhaps snow across northern Scotland. Windy with some heavy rain likely for western parts Monday before clearer and colder weather returns from the north by Tuesday.
