Britain’s drivers will make an estimated 27million leisure trips by car over the course of six days from tomorrow as the great summer getaway becomes drawn out.
The RAC has warned motorists of staggered delays starting tomorrow, the day most schools break up for summer – culminating in a ‘weekend of woe’ on the roads.
The motoring group along with transport analytics firm Inrix also issued an alert for ‘Frantic Friday’ when leisure and commuter traffic will vie with each other for space.
And they expect Saturday will be the busiest individual day with 3.6million getaways by car – with the worst delays expected to be that day on the M5 near Bristol.
Those travelling by rail also face disruption, with major changes to Greater Anglia and London Overground services due to a bridge being replaced in Hackney.
It comes as temperatures are expected to reach the mid-20Cs in some areas this week as the weather looks set to improve for the start of the summer holidays.
But the chaos follows major travel disruption since last Friday after a flawed IT update by cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike knocked many global services offline.
Now, with most schools closing tomorrow, motoring experts anticipate that holidaymakers will make 2.4million getaway trips by car on that day alone.
Leisure traffic will then gradually increase closer to the weekend, with 2.6million journeys expected on Wednesday and 2.5million on Thursday.
In addition, a further 5.4million are anticipated at some point between today and Thursday.
These figures bring the total number of getaway journeys between Monday and Thursday to 13million, which is before what the RAC described as the ‘customary end-of-the week mad rush for the roads’.
The organisation said ‘Frantic Friday’ is expected to see a total of 3.2million trips ahead of a ‘weekend of woe’ with congestion peaking on Saturday, with 3.6million journeys expected.
This will be followed by another 2.9million trips on Sunday.
A further 4million getaways are planned at some point between Friday and Sunday, meaning a total of 13.8million trips could be made throughout the course of the weekend.
The RAC said its records show these three days will form the second busiest summer getaway weekend since 2015.
In that time only 2022 has seen more trips made, with 18.8million taking to their cars during the heatwave that came at the end of two years of Covid-related restrictions.
Traffic at the Port of Dover on Saturday as the busy summer travel period gets underway
Freight traffic queues into the Port of Dover in Kent on Saturday as lorries head to France
Inrix is warning drivers to avoid travelling between 12pm and 5pm on both Friday and Saturday and between 11am and 1pm on Sunday when the worst delays are forecast.
The best times to travel are expected to be after 6pm on Friday and Saturday, or 3pm on Sunday.
Saturday will see the longest hold-ups, with delays on A-roads and motorways expected to take a third longer than usual.
Inrix also said its data shows traffic heading to major UK airports and staycation destinations will build from Thursday onwards.
Delays of over half an hour are expected between the Chiswell Interchange near St Albans, where the M1 meets the M25.
Similar delays are expected the A303 eastbound between Ilminster in Somerset and Andover in Hampshire, which carries traffic to London and the ports of Southampton and Portsmouth, where ferries leave for the Isle of Wight.
The single worst queue, of more than two hours, is predicted on Saturday lunchtime on the M5 heading south between junction 15 for the M4 interchange near Bristol, and junction 23 for Bridgwater, as holidaymakers flock to Devon and Cornwall.
RAC Breakdown spokesperson Alice Simpson said: ‘Anyone heading off on holiday on Saturday or Sunday should expect a weekend of woe on the roads with journeys taking far longer than normal.
‘If you can’t set off really early, then it’s highly likely you’ll be sitting in traffic for quite some time.
‘Our research suggests this year’s getaway is set to be busier than average, possibly due to the UK inflation rate having slowed, giving people a bit more confidence to spend.
‘However, with our recent bad weather causing an increase in international travel bookings, queues to major airports should not be underestimated. We’d advise drivers to plan their routes well in advance if jetting off abroad this week.’
Departing passengers face a long wait for check-in this morning at London Gatwick Airport
Separate research by the RAC found that 11 per cent of motorists had driven to a holiday destination knowing there was a problem with their vehicle, such as a warning light, mechanical issue, fluid leak or poor tread on a tyre.
And Ms Simpson added: ‘It’s a huge concern that one in ten drivers holidaying at home have driven to their destination knowing there’s an issue with their car.
‘That’s the equivalent of more than 2.7million drivers at the wheel of a faulty vehicle this week – a truly frightening statistic – which may lead to a breakdown or even worse, an accident.
Bob Pishue, transportation analyst at Inrix, said: ‘Drivers should expect long queues on major roads when heading to and from their destinations during this summer getaway.’
He added that ‘being flexible with your route – whether it’s the time you leave or a journey that’s longer in miles with fewer delays’ could ‘reduce the stress of being held up and make for a more enjoyable trip’.
Airline passengers wait in a queue at London Heathrow Airport’s Terminal Three this morning
Britons heading to holiday destinations by train also face disruption on certain routes over the coming week due to engineering works.
A major project to replace a 150-year-old bridge over the railway near Hackney Downs in East London began over the weekend and will run until Sunday, August 4.
This means Greater Anglia services between Bishops Stortford to Stratford will not operate all fortnight.
In addition, routes between London Liverpool Street and Cambridge and all Stansted Express trains will divert via Seven Sisters instead of running via Tottenham Hale – extending journey times.
This means Seven Sisters station is expected to be much busier than usual, with a one-way system in operation at peak periods.
Commuters at London Euston railway station last Friday during the global IT outage
London Overground services to and from Liverpool Street and Chingford will also be disrupted by the works.
Elsewhere, in Kent buses will replace Southeastern trains between Sittingbourne and Sheerness-on-Sea this weekend due to repairs on the Kingsferry Bridge.
East Midlands Railway passengers will be affected by works at the weekend, with buses running between Market Harborough, Leicester and Kettering.
And buses will also replace CrossCountry trains between Leicester and Nuneaton this weekend.
South Western Railway travellers will be also impacted by works taking place between Surbiton and Effingham Junction via Claygate, closing all lines.