Following a record-breaking snowfall that wreaked havoc on Toronto roads, the area is bracing for a deep freeze that鈥檚 expected to last through the work week.

A polar vortex that has already blanketed much of the Prairies with frigid conditions is creeping towards southern Ontario, where temperatures between -30 and -35 degrees Celsius are expected from Tuesday night until Friday, according to Environment Canada.

The federal weather agency for parts of Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Nunavut, the Northwest Territories and Quebec.

Atlantic Canada is not without its own weather problems either, as people that鈥檝e dealt with recent flooding now face a flash freeze as the polar vortex slowly heads East.

David Spence, a CTV meteorologist in Calgary, said this year鈥檚 cold snap is bigger and harsher than what we鈥檝e seen before.

鈥淚t's because the cold air this time around is deeper, it is moving a little bit more slowly and it鈥檚 lasting longer,鈥� he told CTV News.

The freezing weather comesjust one day after southern Ontario was hit with a snowfall that began around noon and just didn鈥檛 stop.

By the day鈥檚 end, the snowfall recorded at Toronto鈥檚 Pearson International Airport had surpassed the single-day total for that date set in 2009 when 13.4 centimetres fell, .

Snowfall at the airport impacted those trying to escape the weather. As of Tuesday afternoon, authorities had cancelled 132 flights, roughly 15 per cent of all departures.

Although Monday鈥檚 dumping didn鈥檛 break of 48 centimetres set on Dec. 11, 1944, it was more than enough to snarl traffic.

The steady snow 鈥� at times heavy 鈥� created dangerous road conditions with the Ontario Provincial Police saying there were nearly 400 collisions in the Greater Toronto Area since the snowfall began.

Tuesday鈥檚 morning commute wasn鈥檛 much of an improvement, either, with a number of delays, including a tanker truck rollover on the westbound Hwy. 401 in Whitby, Ont. that caused a significant backup.

鈥淚t鈥檚 been very busy for us all across the GTA. There hasn鈥檛 been one specific area harder hit than others. It鈥檚 just been a mess really across the entire region,鈥� Schmidt told CTV Toronto on Tuesday afternoon.

Toronto plows had already completed three rounds of clearing on the main roads by Tuesday morning and expected to have the side roads completed by Tuesday evening.