Travel Delays Sour Holiday Plans for Many

It was not only airports that overflowed with stranded passengers. Other modes of transportation also slowed down, thanks to the frigid weather.

Patsy Panelo sleeps at San Francisco International Airport as she waits for her sister's delayed...

Patsy Panelo sleeps at San Francisco International Airport as she waits for her sister's delayed flight from Boston in San Francisco, yesterday. In one of the busiest travel days of the year, passengers across the country -- whether they are traveling by plane, bus or train -- are reporting hour-long waits and flight cancellations at airports, bus depots and train stations.

(Jeff Chiu/AP Photo)

More than 600 people waited for trains for 22 hours in Chicago. Amtrak trains across the Midwest slowed to a crawl or stopped as crews tried to clear ice and snow from the tracks. Some trains were even delayed or stopped to allow frozen pipes in the bathroom to thaw. In the northwest, Amtrak trains were running, albeit behind schedule.

Icy roads also complicated road conditions for drivers. In Minnesota, black ice caused cars to slide into ditches, at turns and through intersections.

The Ryan family drove with caution today from their home in Boston to Maine.

"There is a little bit of snow next to the barriers. I guess we are leaving a little early for that reason," Mike Ryan said. "And we will be driving a little slower," his wife Kat added, talking over her husband.

In Portland, Ore. state officials warned drivers of dangerous road conditions and required cars on state highways to have chains, unless they had four-wheel drive and tires designed for hazardous weather. South of Portland, crews were shutting down a section of Interstate 205 at Oregon City because of a buildup of ice and snowbanks.

Some 47,000 residents in the region remained without power after a weekend storm knocked off electricity to more than 250,000 customers. Power companies said road conditions, and snow and ice on power lines, have made it difficult to work in some areas.

So far, weather-related crashes have taken the lives of at least 23 people across the United States.

And the end is still not in sight for the back-to-back wintry mess. Parts of the country are about to get a direct hit from the next wave of this wintry one-two punch.

The Midwest is expected to be dry today but other battered parts of the country -- namely the Northwest and Northeast -- are expected to get another round of snow and ice storms today and over the rest of the holiday week.

A brand new storm system with more snow, ice and rain is on its way to the Pacific Northwest, and heavy rain could cause some flooding in Southern California. In the latest storm, Portland, got its most snow since 1968.

A winter storm warning is in effect for Salt Lake City and parts of Utah, Oregon and southwest Washington.