Traffic forecast: Warning over ‘carmageddon’ chaos during Easter weekend– which day will see the worst visitors?

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Drivers are being warned of chaos on roads over the Easter weekend, with as many as 18.5 million automobile journeys deliberate at the begin of faculty holidays.

Those setting out on their journeys are prone to encounter delays from Thursday 28 March, when youngsters break up at the finish of time period, into Good Friday, with one specialist warning that it might be “carmageddon” for these making their getaways.

The total journey image shouldn’t be as unhealthy as in 2023, when the Easter weekend coincided with strikes that led to the cancellation and delays of dozens of flights and widespread rail engineering work.

This yr, the RAC expects that 14 million automobile journeys will be made, whereas The AA imagine this might rise to 18.5 million.

Separate analysis from the UK’s two greatest breakdown corporations paints a unique image of when precisely the heaviest visitors will be.

Good Friday “could spell some of the worst delays” in line with the RAC, primarily based on analysis performed with transport analytics specialists INRIX.

Traffic is anticipated to be heaviest between 11am and 3pm, with two standard routes for holidaymakers – the M5 southbound between Bristol and Taunton and M3 between the M25 and the south coast – predicted to be affected by a few of the longest jams. Journey instances are anticipated to increase to 1 hour 48 minutes and two hours 18 minutes, respectively – twice so long as traditional.

The AA are advising that Saturday (30 March) will see the peak of automobile journeys, with Easter Sunday and Easter Monday the quietest, regardless of 16 million automobiles anticipated to be on the highway.

“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,” stated RAC Breakdown spokesperson Alice Simpson.

“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.”

She suggested that “anyone who can delay leaving on Thursday 28 March 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.”

Andy Butterfield, Customer Services Director at National Highways stated: “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.

Meanwhile, Transport for London (TfL) has confirmed that there will be planned closures taking place between 29 March and 1 April on the Elizabeth line, parts of the London Overground, DLR and London Trams.

Glynn Barton, TfL’s chief operating officer, said that the disruption was due to “essential safety works and service upgrades” however that “the majority of our network will be running” over the Easter weekend.