Congestion warning for M6 as thousands prepare to travel for the festive getaways
Thousands of people are expected to hit the roads on Christmas Day as they visit loved ones and take special Christmas Getaways.
Drivers are being warned of road and public transport congestion as thousands prepare to travel for Christmas Day.
The warning comes after the AA reported 'peak time' congestion on Friday, December 19, with around 24.4 million cars anticipated to be on the UK's roadways.
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The AA, which produced the estimates, predicted that this year would be the busiest Christmas getaway on record, continuing an upward trend since the Coronovirus travel restrictions were lifted.
An AA survey of more than 10,000 drivers, held prior to Friday, suggested that most drivers would remain local this Christmas; however, nearly two-thirds of respondents said that they would embark on a car journey of up to 50 miles.
While the survey revealed that most people travelling will be to visit family and friends for the holiday, they also suggested that there will likely be congestion around retail hotspots and motorway interchanges.
Motorways and A roads
Among the high-risk locations for Christmas jams were Birmingham M5/M6 interchange, as well as the M8 for Edinburgh and Glasgow, the M60 for Trafford Centre, Greater Manchester, the M52 near Heathrow Airport, the M25, near Bluewater, Kent, and the M4/M45 interchange in Bristol.
In response to the heavy traffic expectations over the Christmas and New Year period, Nationalways said it will lift more than 90 per cent of roadworks on its networks of motorways and major A roads in England between Saturday, December 14 to January, and January 2, including some of those in the West Midlands.
A National Highways spokesperson said it will "remove as many roadworks as we safely can so everyone can get where they need to go this Christmas."
Bus Travel
As well as road congestion, Christmas Day bus travel is also expected to reach an all-time high in Britain, with the Confederation of Passenger Transport (CPT), which made the forecast, announcing that several operators will run extra services on the day.
Among the operators to increase operations this year is National Express, which will run 335 services on Christmas Day, with bookings up 50 per cent, compared to the year prior.
CPT director of policy and external relations, Alison Edwards, said: "It’s a myth that the country grinds to a halt on Christmas Day.
“Each year, more local buses run – we expect well over 100,000 people to catch the bus on December 25.
“Bus and coach operators are stepping up services in response to demand for travel on Christmas Day.
“Fewer young people own cars, and lots of people want to get around – whether it’s to go to a pub or restaurant, visit relatives or enjoy the great outdoors."
Airport Travel
Airports across England are also expected to register their busiest Christmas this year, with the Civil Aviation Authority saying that passenger numbers for the December period are anticipated to exceed the record 22 million seen last year.
Heathrow, Britain's busiest airport, is preparing for more than seven million passengers to travel through its four terminals this month alone.
