I've lived in the UK for a number of years and have been keeping up to date with the snow disruptions in the UK, esp those in Scotland where very few trains are operating north of Glasgow and Edinburgh due to "low temperatures". Perhaps it would be a good time to properly winterise the trains. Suitable rolling stock is quite important for low temperature operation. For example, VIA Rail purchased the ex-Nightstar coaches (renamed Renaissance) and in their early days, their operation were marred by major issues relating to freezing of the doors/toilets/automatic steps etc. After extensive modifications they now provide year round reliable service from summer temperatures (upwards of 40 degrees C) and down to the winter temperatures. VIA Rail's premiere train (the Toronto-Montréal express; the fastest train in Canada) is now operated by GE P42DC's hauling the Renaissance coaches. Time to invest in making Britain's railways more reliable! Here's a little video I found that shows VIA Rail's operations in thick snow on the Ocean (Halifax to Montréal overnight trains) and note the Renaissance coaches after the HEP2 coaches:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KSVay_avv3A