Britain faces Bank Holiday gridlock: Works on major motorways will affect 14.5million cars set to hit the roads and rail network is hit by large scale shut down
- More than 14.5million drivers expected to take to the UK's roads over the forthcoming Bank Holiday weekend
- Major roadworks to see lane closures and reduced speed on M6 in Birmingham, the M1 in Bedfordshire and M40
- Train passengers also facing disruption with Charing Cross, London Bridge and Waterloo East all shut at weekend
- Experts urging drivers not to travel on Friday evening as commuters and holiday traffic expected to cause gridlock
Drivers face travel misery this Bank Holiday weekend as major roadworks affect the 14.5million cars set to take to the roads and planned engineering works shut down part of the rail network.
Travellers face lengthy traffic jams on three of the biggest motorways in the country – the M6 in Birmingham, the M1 in Bedfordshire and the M40 in Oxfordshire – as lane closures are brought in and speed restrictions are dropped to just 30mph.
Train passengers also face disruption with three major London stations – Charing Cross, London Bridge and Waterloo East – closed over the long weekend.
Rail-goers in the Midlands also face misery on the train line with West Coast services between Birmingham and Wolverhampton and Crewe and Wigan severely disrupted.
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Travellers face lengthy traffic jams on three of the biggest motorways in the country – the M6 in Birmingham, the M1 in Bedfordshire and the M40 in Oxfordshire – as lane closures are brought in and speed restrictions are dropped to just 30mph (shown numbered on graphic, left). Delays are also expected on the M25, M4, M5, M53 and M62 (shaded on graphic, left). Rail passengers will also endure engineering works (right)
The M1 (pictured) is expected to be one of the worst affected motorways in Britain as roadworks see speed restrictions dropped to 50mph. There will be around 800 miles worth of roadworks in place over the Bank Holiday weekend as 14.5million cars take to the nation's roads
More than 14.5million drivers are set to take to the roads to embark on the spring break with gridlock expected on the M25, M4, M5, M53 and M62 as drivers avoid the rail network.
The busiest day is expected to be Friday, with four million people taking to the roads in a desperate bid to visit family and friends for the three-day weekend and commuters returning home.
Experts are urging drivers to avoid travelling on Friday if possible, with 800 miles of roadworks already in place on motorways and the major A roads before Bank Holiday work even begins. Saturday morning, before 10am, is being deemed the best time to travel.
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Pete Williams, head of external affairs at RAC, said: 'Our data shows that many motorists look set to make the most of the coming long weekend by grabbing the car keys and taking to the road to visit friends and family.
'While the weather forecast might not hold too much promise, we're now into the time of year when days are longer and, when the sun does put in an appearance, it should feel pleasantly warm.
'As is typically the case, the Friday before the bank holiday looks set to be the most hectic day – so we're advising motorists who can set off early to do so to get ahead of the rest.'
Highways England (formerly Highways Agency) confirmed that the M1, M6 and M40 were likely to be the hardest hit this weekend with 'improvement work' and 'waterproofing' the reason behind the lane closures and reduced speed limits.
The M40 and M6 will see speeds reduced to just 30mph while those on the M1 – set to be the worst affected this weekend - will be forced to slow down to 50mph between junctions 10 and 13.
On the rail network, passengers face major disruption in the London area with Charing Cross and Waterloo East stations closed all weekend and Cannon Street shut on Saturday.
All Southeastern services in and out of these stations will be affected and trains will also not stop at London Bridge.
Network Rail said the major engineering work was part of the 6.5billion government-sponsored Thameslink Programme to improve travel through London Bridge.
Works on the West Coast Main Line in the Midlands will affect services between Birmingham and Wolverhampton, including Stafford, between Crewe and Wigan and also in Scotland, with rail replacement buses in place instead.
The main line into London Liverpool Street will be shut on Sunday and Monday with no Greater Anglia train services between Shenfield in Essex and Liverpool Street.
There will also be disruption to various South West Train services in and out of London Waterloo with no trains calling at Earlsfield on Sunday and no services to Weybridge on Monday. Services from London Waterloo to Hounslow (via Brentford) will terminate at Twickenham on Monday and services from London Waterloo to Exeter St Davids will start and terminate at Basingstoke.
Services between London Paddington and Slough may also face delays while work is carried out for the future Crossrail project.
Train services in and out of London Waterloo will be disrupted this weekend with engineering work taking place between Waterloo and Sreatham (demonstrated in graphic above). There will be no trains calling at Earlsfield on Sunday and no services to Weybridge on Monday
Charing Cross, Cannon Street, Waterloo East and London Bridge will be partly shut over the Bank Holiday while work is carried out as part of the £6.5million Thameslink programme. Southeastern services will be largely disrupted as work takes place in the areas shown in red above
There will be no trains between London Liverpool Street station and Shenfield in Essex with all trains terminating at Ingatestone (shown in red on the line). Major track work is being carried out to build a new bridge at Pudding Mill Lane (near Stratford) for future Crossrail services
Network Rail said the engineering work has been timed to minimise disruption as passenger numbers can drop by 20 to 30 per cent during the Bank Holiday.
Mark Carne, chief executive, said: 'Our improvement programme this bank holiday, delivered by a 14,000-strong army of rail workers, is focussed on delivering a better service for passengers.
'We are acutely conscious that many people want to use the railway over the bank holiday to reunite with their friends and families, which is why the vast majority of the network is running normally over the long weekend.
'We'd like to apologise to any passengers whose plans are affected by our improvement work, but I hope they will understand that this is a quieter time on the railway and we want to minimise the overall impact of these vital projects on passengers.
'Passenger numbers continue to grow and grow and this bank holiday investment programme forms a key part of our £38bn railway upgrade plan that is aimed at meeting surging demand and improving and expanding our congested railway network.'
Network Rail bosses are under pressure to finish rail engineering works on time to avoid a repeat of the Christmas travel chaos fiasco in north London.
That saw thousands of passengers stuck at Finsbury Park on December 27 after work at King's Cross and at Paddington stations overran.
Those hoping to make the most of the long weekend will want to get out and about on Friday, which forecasters predict will bring the best weather conditions.
The Met Office said Friday would be the best day of the Bank Holiday weekend with dry, sunny spells, before a low pressure system sweeps in on Saturday bringing thick cloud, heavy, thundery rain and strong winds. Pictured: The sun shines over Ripon Cathedral in North Yorkshire
The Met Office said Friday should remain bright and dry, with plenty of sunny spells, before a low pressure system sweeps in on Saturday bringing thick cloud, heavy, thundery rain and strong winds.
Nicola Willis, a forecaster, said: 'Friday should be fairly decent, it's looking fairly dry across the most of the UK with sunny spells.
'Throughout the afternoon it will turn a bit cloudier from the south west but that's only really affecting Devon, Cornwall and south Wales. Most places will be dry with brightness.'
The Friday before the bank holiday looks set to be the most hectic day – so we're advising motorists who can set off early to do so to get ahead of the rest
Pete Williams, RAC
She said temperatures would be around 14C across much of the UK and may even reach 15C in the south east.
Ms Willis said that Saturday would be markedly different with a low pressure system developing towards the west of the UK, bringing strong winds from the south west.
She said: 'As we head into the weekend, it's going to turn a lot more unsettled. There's a bit of a north/south split, with most in the north seeing a fine start with sunshine but breezy. In comparison, southern and western parts will be increasingly wet with heavier downpours of rain.
'The band of rain will spread eastwards and by the end of Saturday it will be fairly damp across most parts.'
She said temperatures would hover around the 12C mark on Saturday and Sunday – a couple of degrees below the 14C average for this time of year – but said 'brisk winds' and rain would make it feel even chillier.
On Sunday, winds are expected to increase further with speeds of up to 45mph forecast in the north of the country. Most of the country will be overcast with long spells of rain.
Ms Willis said Monday would also be 'very unsettled' but said there's a better chance of brightness, with some sunshine developing. However, despite it being drier, winds will still be 'fairly breezy'.
The pressure is on Network Rail this Bank Holiday weekend to ensure its planned engineering works finish on time. Last Christmas there was travel chaos in London after work at King's Cross and Paddington overran, causing severe congestion and delays at Finsbury Park (pictured)
The travel association Abta said those heading abroad for the long weekend were most likely to pick a European city destination or jet off to the Mediterranean in the search of some spring sunshine.
A spokesman said: 'Bank holiday weekends are always a popular time to take a break and hundreds of thousands of Brits are expected to head away this weekend.
'European cities are particularly popular for a short break and holidaymakers are also taking advantage of the strong exchange rate with summer bookings to Eurozone destinations up 3 per cent from last year.
'With bad weather forecast in the UK, many Brits will also be looking for some sun, heading to beaches around the Mediterranean.
'Longer haul, Florida and the Caribbean are also proving popular.'
WHAT WORK IS BEING CARRIED OUTON THE RAIL NETWORK TO CAUSE DISRUPTION OVER THE MAY BANK HOLIDAY?
Network Rail's engineering works will see 14,000 workers deployed to major train lines across Britain over the May Bank Holiday weekend (file picture)
The following major projects are responsible for the planned engineering works over the forthcoming May Bank Holiday weekend:
London Liverpool Street: On Sunday and Monday, Great Eastern main line services from Liverpool Street to Ingatestone will be disrupted while work takes place to build a new bridge at Pudding Mill Lane (near Stratford) for future Crossrail services. New overhead lines and track will also be installed near Chadwell Heath. Passenger services will start and terminate at Ingatestone and a rail replacement road service will be in operation between Ingatestone, Wickford, Newbury Park (for connections to London Underground) and Liverpool Street.
London Waterloo: On Sunday and Monday, a vital junction outside Waterloo station will be replaced. This will impact services on several routes serving the station.
Charing Cross, Cannon Street, Waterloo East and London Bridge: These stations will be shut over the Bank Holiday weekend while work is carried out as part of the £6.5million Thameslink programme - which aims to improve services between the north and south. Services running in and out of platforms 1 - 3 will be closed at various points over the weekend with no Southeastern services from Charing Cross, Cannon Street, Waterloo East and London Bridge and diversions into Victoria/Blackfriars or trains terminating at New Cross.
Paddington to Slough: Over the bank holiday weekend substantial new track and junctions will be installed at Slough for future Crossrail services. This will have limited impact on services as two of the four lines from Paddington to Slough will remain open and available for services.
West Coast Main Line to Scotland: Services will be disrupted around Wolverhampton, Stafford and Crewe with amended services for passengers using some Virgin Trains, London Midland, Cross Country, Transpennine Express and Arriva Train Wales services. Work includes a new signalling system being installed between Birmingham and Wolverhampton, new track and overhead lines being put in at Stafford and a new track between Crewe and Wigan.
Glasgow: Work to the south and south east of Glasgow will see changes to Virgin Trains, ScotRail, Transpennine Express and Cross Country services over the weekend. Workers will demolish a road bridge near Newton and install a new footbridge near Motherwell. A new track and junction will be installed near Carstairs.
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