Ten worst Easter traffic hotspots holidaymakers warned to avoid as getaway begins

Britons have been warned they face a weekend of travel chaos on what is predicted to be the busiest Easter bank holiday on UK roads in almost a decade.

As many as 22.48 million leisure car journeys are expected to be made this weekend as families head off for the first Easter weekend free of Covid restrictions since the pandemic began.

It is the highest number since the organisation first started tracking motorists’ plans in 2014.

The busiest day is set to be Good Friday, when an estimated 4.62 million journeys are likely to be made, followed by Easter Monday.

Holidaymakers are also facing low petrol and diesel supplies, major rail disruption and long queues at ferry ports and airports.

According to traffic data service Inrix, there are likely to be several traffic hotspots across the weekend, particularly on the M6, M25 and A303.

The M6 north between Liverpool and the Lake District; M6 south towards Stoke-on-Trent; M25 between Surrey and the M40 exit; and A303 near Stonehenge could see some of the worst congestion.

(Inrix/RAC)

Here, we’ve highlighted the 10 worst Easter traffic hotspots to avoid and when:

Friday:

M6 north J26 Liverpool to J36 South Lakes around middle of the day

M25 clockwise J8 to J16 around late morning

A303 approaching Stonehenge during the morning

Saturday:

A303 approaching Stonehenge around late morning

M25 clockwise J8 to J16 around middle of the day

Sunday:

M25 clockwise J8 to J16 around middle of the day

A303 approaching Stonehenge around middle of the day

Monday:

M25 clockwise J8 to J16 early afternoon

M6 south J20 for the M56 to J16 Stoke-on-Trent early evening

M3 north J14 for the M27 to J7 Basingstoke early afternoon

Cars make their way along the A303 past Stonehenge in Wiltshire during the Easter getaway

(Andrew Matthews/PA)

The predicted delays will follow travel chaos on Thursday, when passengers at airports and train stations left waiting for hours in long queues.

Many reported hour-long waits at Manchester and Birmingham airports, while dozens of British Airways and easyJet flights were cancelled at Heathrow.

Meanwhile, those at London St Pancras said they were standing in long queues for services to Europe on Thursday morning.

Rail passengers have also been warned of further delays as Network Rail carries out 530 engineering projects costing a total of £83 million over the weekend.

People on the beach in Bournemouth as Good Friday is expected to be the hottest day of the year so far

(Andrew Matthews/PA)

These include the closure of the West Coast Main Line between London Euston and Milton Keynes for four days from Good Friday due to upgrades of the existing line and HS2 work.

Parts of the railway between Birmingham International station and Coventry will also be closed, as will lines around Crewe station.

Dover-Calais sailings by P&O Ferries were also still suspended as of Thursday night, which caused large queues of lorries forming on roads approaching the Port of Dover throughout the day.

On top of all the travel disruption, supplies of petrol and diesel at filling stations in some areas of the country have been at around half their usual level as the UK’s travel network comes under pressure.