Millions across the UK are facing travel disruptions this bank holiday weekend due to heavy traffic, a rail strike, and ongoing engineering work.
The RAC urged drivers to set off as early as possible for their holiday getaways or “be prepared to spend longer in traffic”.
Major roads in the South East and South West are expected to be among the most congested, as nearly 18 million drivers are planning holiday trips.
A strike planned for Saturday and Monday by CrossCountry train workers who belong to the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union will disrupt services throughout the bank holiday weekend.
Additionally, passengers are being advised that several key routes will be closed due to engineering work, as Network Rail carries out 261 projects across the UK.
The bank holiday in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland on Monday is the last before Christmas.
The RAC expects 17.6 million getaway trips by car to take place in the UK between Friday and Monday.
Three million journeys for holidays or day trips are expected on Friday, rising to 3.4 million on Saturday.
Some 2.4 million leisure journeys are expected on Sunday and 2.7 million on Monday.
The RAC said an additional 6.1 million drivers are planning a trip at some point between Friday and Monday.
The figures are based on responses to a survey of 2,080 UK adults, projected onto the 34 million cars licensed in the UK.
Travellers can experience motorway delays of over 40 minutes
Transport analytics company Inrix is projecting that the M5 between Bristol and Devon will have the most severe getaway traffic.
The section from junction 15, north of Bristol, to junction 23 for Bridgwater is expected to experience delays exceeding 40 minutes on Friday and Saturday.
Delays of over 30 minutes are predicted on Friday along the M20 in Kent, a key route used by many vehicles travelling to Channel crossings at Dover or Folkestone.
This advisory covers the stretch from junction seven near Maidstone to junction three (Addington Interchange), as well as from junction one at Swanley to junction five at Aylesford.
RAC mobile servicing and repairs team leader Nick Mullender said: “We’re expecting major roads to airports and coastal destinations to be extremely busy, especially the south-east and south-west regions which could end up bearing the brunt of most holiday hold-ups.
“Anyone planning routes through these areas should set off as early as possible or be prepared to spend longer in traffic.”
Rail network delays
Due to industrial action on the rail network, there will be no CrossCountry services on Saturday.
Major disruptions are expected on Sunday, while trains will run on a reduced schedule on Monday.
Passengers are encouraged to avoid travelling on Saturday and to plan their journeys either before or after the bank holiday weekend, or to request a full refund.
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There will be no long-distance services between London King’s Cross and Peterborough on Sunday due to engineering work.
Avanti West Coast will operate a reduced service to and from London Euston, with trains between Birmingham New Street and Birmingham International being diverted, which would add extra time to journeys.
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CrossCountry services will be diverted, leading to longer journey times, while London Northwestern services will operate exclusively between Birmingham International and their usual destinations.
Helen Hamlin, Network Rail’s chief network operator, said the “vast majority of the railway will be running” but “works on some parts of the network are unfortunately unavoidable”.
