28 million trips as Brits prepare for busiest Easter getaway in eight years

14 April 2022, 08:50 | Updated: 14 April 2022, 09:30

People heading off for an Easter break this weekend are being warned of queues this morning with an estimated 28 million journeys set to be made in the busiest Bank Holiday getaway for almost a decade.

Travellers going away for Easter are being urged to plan ahead to avoid the busiest times or even travel overnight to avoid the worst of the queues if possible.

Staff shortages have led to flight cancellations and queues at airports, and there's ongoing disruption at ferry terminals.

The AA expects some 28 million car journeys to be made over the bank holiday weekend.

Spots on the roads that are expected to be particularly busy over the Bank Holiday include:

• The M6 north between Junction 26 (Orrell Interchange, Greater Manchester) and Junction 36 (the Lake District).
• The M25 clockwise from Junction 8 (Reigate Hill Interchange, Surrey) to Junction 16 (Denham Interchange, Buckinghamshire).
• The A303 near Stonehenge, Wiltshire.

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Great Western Railway have said weekend services have already started getting busier on trains.

P&O Ferries meanwhile has suspended all of its passenger services across the Channel over Easter, affecting the holiday plans of thousands.

The ferry firm announced last night it would not be running any passenger services between Dover and Calais this weekend.

The company, which suspended sailings afters its controversial decision to sack 800 of its crew without warning last month, had hoped to restart ahead of Good Friday.

Large traffic queues are likely to continue on roads in Kent due to a shortage of cross-Channel sailings caused by the suspension of operations.

This weekend's Easter getaway is predicted to be the busiest on the UK's roads in at least eight years.

The busiest single day on the roads over the bank holiday weekend is expected to be Good Friday.

On the trains, rail passengers are being warned of delays as Network Rail carries out 530 engineering projects costing a total of £83 million.

The West Coast Main Line will be closed between London Euston and Milton Keynes between Good Friday and Easter Monday due to upgrades of the existing line and HS2 work.

This will affect football supporters as Liverpool and Manchester City meet in an FA Cup semi-final match at Wembley on Saturday.

No Southern services will be able to run to and from London Victoria, with most trains diverted into London Bridge.

There will be no direct trains between London and Stansted Airport at Easter, buses will replace Stansted Express trains between Waltham Cross and the Airport.