Great Bank Holiday getaway begins as millions endure queues and delays on motorways, train and at airports
Up to 14 million motorists, train, plane and ferry passengers are experiencing lengthy queues and delays
BRITS faced Bank Holiday travel chaos today as motorways ground to a halt and train carriages were left packed to the rafters.
More than 14million cars are hitting the road, with motorway journeys taking up to three times longer and thousands affected by airport strikes.
The M5 will be a traffic hotspot for the entire weekend, with the worst jams running along junctions one to four in the West Midlands.
Tomorrow, the M1 will be badly affected from junctions 22 to 25 in the East Midlands, with journey times increasing by at least one hour.
Motorists' will face more disappointment as forecasters have warned of difficult driving conditions.
Simon Partridge from the Met Office said: "In places we are quite likely to see some standing water on the roads which will add to the difficult driving conditions on Sunday.
THE BUSIEST ROADS THIS WEEKEND
M5
- From junctions four in Bromsgrove and one in West Bromwich, journeys could take four times as long from 9am this morning.
M20
- In Kent, journeys from junctions nine to three could take more than an hour, instead of the usual 22minutes.
- Motorists heading towards the Channel Tunnel and Port of Dover will face huge disruption from 7am on Friday.
M1
- On Saturday from 2.30pm drivers will face huge traffic jams of up to an hour.
- Eight miles of roadworks have not been lifted between Leicester and Nottingham.
M4
- From junctions 29 to 24, drivers in Newport, Wales will face huge dirsuption.
- Peak time is expected to start at around 10am on Friday
"Some areas could see winds of between 30mph to 40mph, so a wet and windy day."
Holidaymakers who opted for public transport will also face major disruption, as engineering work will disrupt a number of major routes.
Network Rail has urged passengers not to travel on the West Coast Main Line to and from London from Saturday.
WHERE ARE THE ROADWORKS?
- M23 junctions eight to ten
- M6 junctions 16 to 19
- M20 junctions three to five
- M6 junctions two to four
- A14 junctions 31 to 28
- M1 junctions 13 to 14
- M1 junctions 23a to 25
- M5 junction three
- M6 junctions 14 to 15
- M6 junctions eight
- M62 junctions 10 to 12
- A1m junction 15 to A1 Buckden
- A14 junctions 32 to 34
WHAT ABOUT PUBLIC TRANSPORT?
As many as 400 sets of engineering work is taking place over the Bank Holiday weekend.
Railway
- No trains running to or from London Euston station from Saturday to Monday, and the following weekend September 1 to 2
- No trains to or from Bolton until August 31
Buses
- Replacement buses running between Manchester, Preston, Wigan and Blackburn
London Euston station will until Monday, and will also be closed the following weekend, as work to replace a junction in Wembley continues.
Liverpool Airport staff are still on a 36-hour strike that is expected to finish tomorrow morning.
Many will be faced with two hour queues for passport control at Heathrow Airport.
As many as 111,400 passengers are expected to pass through Manchester Airport today, making it the busiest day of the summer.
Services to Manchester, Birmingham International and Derby will also be affected.
Network Rail route managing director Martin Frobisher said: "There is never an ideal time to shut the railway but these weekends are the least disruptive times to do it."
It comes as showers in the north and west will move south-east on Friday, bringing a cool night for the UK, with some patches of frost in the north.
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