ATHENS, Jan. 8 (Xinhua) -- Residents of Athens woke up Tuesday to the sight of the Greek capital blanketed in snow, as a new cold weather front battered Greece, bringing freezing temperatures and snowfall even in low altitudes.

The weather system, dubbed "Telemachos," has been sweeping the country since Monday evening, following two other cold fronts which have gripped Greece since the start of the year.

Police have cut off traffic on regional roads in Athens' suburbs and banned vehicles weighing over 3.5 tons from the highway linking the capital to northern Greece, Greek national news agency AMNA reported.

Road traffic has also been disrupted in many other parts of Greece, while no disruptions were reported so far on Tuesday in ferry services and flights.

In several districts of Athens and its suburbs, as well as in other regions in the northern parts of the country, schools remained closed due to the snowfall.

Power cuts were reported in Athens' northern suburbs and on the island of Skopelos.

According to Greece's meteorological service, the cold front will be brief and recede by Wednesday.