HOUSTON—Thought Old Man Winter was finished with Houston after last week's cold snap? Not so much.

The National Weather Service has issued a freezing rain advisory for counties north and west of Houston through Tuesday at 9 a.m.

That means periods of freezing rain or freezing drizzle could cause travel hazards. Drivers should be prepared for slippery roads -- especially across bridges and overpasses that could become slick and hazardous.

The advisory covers the area generally along and northwest of a Columbus to Conroe to Livingston line.

The counties in the advisory are: Austin, Brazos, Burleson, Colorado, Grimes, Houston, Madison, Montgomery, Polk, San Jacinto, Trinity, Walker, Waller and Washington.

"Patches of light rain and drizzle are expected to become freezing rain and freezing drizzle during the early evening hours across the northwest edge of southeast Texas as the temperature drops below the freezing mark," according to the advisory.

"North and west -- that's really where we have the best chance for more significant ice accumulations," said 11 News Meteorologist Gene Norman. "Up 290 when you get past Waller and Prairie View, and I-10 when you get past Sealy."

At this point, the Houston metropolitan area is expected to have temperatures in the mid 30s tonight -- two to three degrees above the freezing mark.

Officials at TxDOT and the Toll Road Authority were also keeping a watchful eye on the weather in a bid to avoid the traffic headaches caused by last week’s cold snap.

They said they were monitoring temps and forecasts, and they planned to have the proper precautions in place in case of a freeze.

11 NEWS

TxDOT filled its trucks with sand Monday -- just in case.

It was low cloud cover that caused delays at Bush Intercontinental Airport. No significant delays were reported at Hobby.11 News Meteorologist Mario Gomez said arctic air was to blame for the drastic drop in the mercury the Bayou City experienced Monday morning.

The day started out in the 60s, but temps dropped into the 40s in a matter of hours.

Tuesday’s high is only expected to reach 43 degrees.