Drivers warned of potential Easter traffic hold-ups

Drivers could face a hat-trick of hold-ups as the bank holiday weekend coincides with the end of the Easter holidays for many schools, a motoring organisation has warned.

The RAC said traffic would be "equally severe" on Thursday, Good Friday and Saturday, with an estimated 19m leisure trips by car planned across the UK between Thursday and Easter Monday.

Alice Simpson, RAC's breakdown spokesperson, told drivers to expect "extremely high levels of traffic from Thursday onwards".

Transport analytics company Inrix predicted delays of more than an hour on the 35-mile (56.3km) stretch of the M25, from junction 7 for Gatwick Airport to junction 16 for the M40 on Thursday.

It also highlighted the M6, north of Chester, and the M25 clockwise towards Godstone in Surrey, as likely traffic hotspots that day.

On Good Friday, the lengthiest hold-ups are expected to be between 11:00 BST and 13:00.

Drivers using two popular routes to the South West - the A303 in Wiltshire and the M5 southbound from Bristol - are being warned of long queues, particularly during that period.

Those planning to travel by car are being told to set off as early as possible in the morning or later in the day when traffic has eased.

Ms Simpson said: "Although journey numbers are still very high, we're anticipating more day trips and weekend breaks than people heading off on one and two-week stints.

"This could lead to a hat-trick of hold-ups on Thursday, Friday and Saturday as drivers visit family and friends."

The Port of Dover said it expected to process about 5,500 cars embarking on outbound ferry sailings between 06:00 and 13:00 on Good Friday.

It urged drivers travelling to the port to use main routes only and to arrive no more than two hours ahead of their scheduled sailing.

Traffic management system Operation Brock will also be in place in Kent until 22 April.

The scheme, which is designed to manage traffic flows on the M20, with lorries heading for the Port of Dover or Eurotunnel directed to a specific lane, involves a reduced 50mph speed limit.

Network Rail is also carrying out engineering work in several locations on the weekend, with disruption expected on a number of routes.

The most significant impact will be at London Euston, where there will be no services to or from Milton Keynes on Easter Saturday and Easter Sunday, and a reduced timetable on Good Friday and Easter Monday.

Tourism authority VisitEngland said about 10.6m British adults were planning to take a holiday in the UK during the bank holiday period.

Aviation analytics company Cirium said 11,282 flights were scheduled to depart from UK airports between Good Friday and Easter Monday.

Additional reporting from PA Media

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