It's been a "bleak" few days for business and a frustrating time for motorists along Arthur's Pass, as the use of snow chains is enforced for any vehicle travelling the South Island route.
The road through the heart of the Southern Alps, 150km northwest of Christchurch, has today been closed to all vehicles without chains after a heavy snow dump yesterday is gradually cleared.
"Yesterday was a bit of a bleak day for business because the roads were closing in and today we've probably got the worst of the road conditions but we've got much better custom," Arthur's Pass township business owner Sean Moran said.
"We've got a few people who've been held up on the pass overnight.
"Roads are really important to our business. While they bring a lot of attention - people are attracted to snow - the roads also have a big impact on what goes through here which is predominantly a route not only for tourists but supplies for the West Coast."
The fact the road was split between the Canterbury and West Coast regions has caused issues for its clearing.
"The West Coast side is very good. The boundary of course is somewhere towards the middle to the end of the village, which I personally think is a ridiculous place to put the boundary between two contracts on a highway that is affected by snow end to end," he said.
"The scenery is beautiful but it comes at a price and a cost, we see it here all the time."
Other motorists weren't as bothered by the conditions, but placing chains on their cars was an unfamiliar task.
"I've done it before but been a few years," one truck driver said.
"Nah we're alright, yeah"
Tourists without snow chains handy have also been stranded in Arthur's Pass overnight.
"Yep since yesterday. We've just walked around to see mother nature. We are heading to Greymouth," one man said.
"Travelling, it happens."
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