BRITS wanting to get away for the Easter holiday face travel chaos as experts warn to expect 14million car journeys and major rail works.
Motoring organisation the RAC has warned motorists that journey times on popular routes could take twice as long as normal.
Transport analysts at Inrix predicted that the worst of the traffic is expected between 2pm and 7pm on Thursday, when holiday journeys are set to mix with regular commutes.
Good Friday is also predicted to be a nightmare day for drivers.
Figures from the RAC and Inrix show Good Friday could spell some of the worst delays for drivers as an estimated 2.6million getaway trips by car are due to be made on that day alone.
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This is 600,000 more than the 2million journeys planned for both March 28 – the day many schools break up – and Easter Monday, and is up on volumes expected over Easter Saturday and Sunday with 2.3million separate trips each.
To make matters worse, an additional one-in-10 drivers are planning a trip over the long Easter weekend but are undecided exactly when they’ll hit the road, leading to an estimated 3.3milion more trips staggered over these dates.
On Thursday, the busiest route is expected to be the M25 in both directions between the M23 for Gatwick and the M1 in Hertfordshire from 4pm, with journeys on this stretch taking over two hours – more than double the usual time.
While on Good Friday, the lengthiest delays are expected between 11am and 3pm meaning drivers are advised to start their trips as early as possible in the morning or delay them until later the afternoon.
Two popular routes for holidaymakers – the M5 southbound between Bristol and Taunton and M3 between the M25 and the south coast – are predicted to be affected by some of the longest jams, with journey times extending to one hour 48 minutes and two hours 18 minutes respectively – twice as long as usual.
For those spending the first full week of the Easter holidays away from home, the busiest route to return on will be the M5 northbound between Taunton and Bristol on April 5 at 3pm, where it will take an estimated two and a half hours to travel.
'CARMAGEDDON'
RAC Breakdown spokesperson Alice Simpson said: “With Easter falling earlier than usual at the start of the school holidays, it could be ‘carmageddon’ for holidaymakers.
“Anyone who can delay leaving on March 28 until much later in the evening or set off as early as possible on Good Friday is likely to have a better journey than those who travel during the peak periods of the day.
“On every journey there are key pinch points where you can save yourself lots of valuable time if you can get through before everyone else.
“This will be especially true over the whole Easter holidays as our research shows two-thirds (64 per cent) of drivers will be making a leisure journey on major roads at some point.
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“Lengthy queues can be expected along routes to the usual hotspots like the West Country, the Lake District and the south coast, especially during the middle of the day when most people make trips.
“While a good proportion of drivers aren’t yet tying themselves to a date, there may be even more cars on the road than anticipated if the sun decides to make an appearance.”
PREPARE FOR LONGER JOURNEYS
Bob Pishue, Inrix transportation analyst, said: “Although travel times will peak on Thursday and Friday afternoons, drivers should be prepared for longer journeys than normal throughout the entire weekend.
“To avoid the longest delays, we advise adjusting departure times so you’re not travelling in peak commuter hours.
“Knowing when and where congestion will build can help drivers avoid the stress of sitting in traffic.”
Andy Butterfield, Customer Services Director at National Highways said: “This is the first bank holiday of the year, so we expect the roads to be busy with people looking to make the most of a long weekend.
“We encourage people to plan ahead and prepare their cars in advance for long journeys as this can help reduce the risk of breakdowns.”
A survey of 2,136 UK adults commissioned by the RAC and Inrix revealed that 2.6m journeys are planned on Good Friday, with some 2.3million trips expected for both Easter Saturday and Sunday.
Another two million trips are expected on Thursday and Easter Monday, and a further 3.3million journeys are due with no clear starting date, making for a total of around 14.5million journeys.
RAIL ENGINEERING WORKS
The situation doesn’t look to be much better on the trains either with Network Rail set to carry out engineering works on the West Coast Main Line.
That line stretches from London, all the way up to Scotland.
The stretch of railway will be shut between Good Friday and Easter Monday and disruption is also expected in Glasgow and Huddersfield.
Network Rail’s network strategy director Laurence Bowman said there was "never a good time to do the work we need to do", but added that a lower number of commuters over the bank holiday weekend gives them "the opportunity to do major work we couldn't do in a normal weekend".
"We've got 493 different pieces of work taking place this Easter, most happening overnight," he added, "including laying over 8,000 metres of new rail and putting down over 40,000 tonnes of new ballast to support the tracks."
James Dean, Network Rail’s West Coast South route director, said: “We’re returning to Northampton to complete a major connection to the West Coast Main Line which will enable up to four extra freight trains every day on this economically important freight route.
"This removes up to 300 lorries off the road every day and helps reduce carbon emissions.
"Important work to replace track is also taking place this Easter helping to improve reliability of passenger journeys.
“We know there’s never an ideal time to close the railway, so I’d like to thank people in advance for their patience ahead of this work.
"With Euston closed to all but Overground services for four days my best advice is, if you can, travel either side of the bank holiday – before and after the railway closure – for the smoothest journey possible.
"Otherwise please plan ahead by checking National Rail Enquiries for the latest travel information.”
