Easter traffic chaos as drivers face huge jams as RAC issues bank holiday weekend warning

Drivers face jams galore overas it coincides with the end of the break for many kids. The RAC said traffic will be equally severe ton Thursday, Good Friday and Saturday, with an estimated 2.7 million leisure journeys by each day.

More than 19 million between Thursday and Easter Monday. The RAC’s Alice Simpson urged drivers to expect extremely high levels of traffic from Thursday onwards. She said: “The late bank holiday weekend clashes with the end of the Easter holidays for many schools which we think will change this year’s getaway.

"We anticipate more day trips and weekend breaks. This could lead to a hat trick of hold-ups on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Drivers shouldn’t expect to escape the queues if they don’t plan the best time to set off. It’s best to travel as early as possible or later in the day.”

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Transport analytics company Inrix predicted delays of more than an hour on 35 miles of the M25 from Junction 7 to ­Junction 16 on Thursday. The M6 north of Chester and the M25 ­clockwise towards Godstone are likely blackspots.

On Good Friday, lengthiest hold-ups are expected to be between 11am and 1pm. 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.

Dover expects around 5,500 cars embarking on outbound ferry sailings between 6am and 1pm on Good Friday. Drivers travelling to the Kent port are urged to use main routes only and arrive no more than two hours ahead of their sailing.

Operation Brock, which manages traffic on the M20, will be in place in Kent until April 22. It is designed to manage traffic flows on the M20 motorway, with lorries heading for the Port of Dover or Eurotunnel directed to a specific lane.

Network Rail is conducting engineering work in several locations this weekend, causing disruption to 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 around 10.6 million British adults are planning to take a holiday in the UK over the bank holiday period.

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