Posted: 15:37, 17 April 2022 |  Updated: 16:03, 17 April 2022  

Vacationers are warned to prepare for another manic Monday travel mess with huge queues at airports and 14 million cars on the road during the Easter holidays as the weekend ends. In contrast to the pre-weekend Easter getaway, which lasted several days, all traffic will be concentrated in one day, warns the British Motorists’ Association AA. The unions said airports were also facing queues at passport gates as many who took Easter breaks abroad return to the UK tomorrow before schools resume on Tuesday. In addition to the misery, more train passengers will hit the road with 530 railway upgrades – costing 83 83 million – that will take place tomorrow, experts say. Vacationers are warned to prepare for another manic Monday of travel chaos with huge queues at airports and 14 million cars on the road during the Easter holiday at the end of the weekend. Photo: Slow motion on the M3 near Egham in Surrey on Friday. In contrast to the pre-weekend Easter getaway, which lasted several days, all of this will be concentrated in one day, warns the British Motorists’ Association AA. Photo: Passenger Check-in at Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport, West London on Saturday 9 April A total of 47 million car trips are made between Good Friday and Easter Monday, according to combined AA data for leisure excursions and regular trips. AA spokesman Tony Ritz said: “A large percentage of people will be traveling on Monday and we are preparing for a lot of traffic. “The day will see people returning home and also a large number of day trips, to shores in places where the weather is good or inland if the weather is not so good.” Lucy Moreton, secretary general of the Immigration Services Association, said: “This weekend, with catastrophically inadequate staff and people traveling again, we expect the queues to move from the security queues to the returning Border Forces.” RAC spokesman Simon Williams said: “Rail engineering works are leading to more traffic congestion as some people travel by car.” And there is no rail break, as some 500 bus replacement trips at Easter usually turn fast train journeys into multi-shift nightmares. West Coast Line projects use coaches as almost 50 miles of the route is closed between London Euston and Milton Keynes. And every Stansted Express train passenger is transported by bus to and from the airport. The unions said airports were also facing queues at passport gates and luggage carousels, as many who had taken Easter breaks abroad returned to the UK tomorrow before schools resumed on Tuesday. Photo: Passenger Check-in at Terminal 2 at Heathrow Airport, West London on Saturday 9 April Richard Freeston-Clough, a spokesman for the London TravelWatch, said: “More leisure travel takes place during Easter – but engineering is a hassle.” A Network Rail spokesman said: “The vast majority of the network is open to routine operations. “Where our projects affect services, we aim to keep disruption to a minimum by using alternative routes and using buses as a last resort.” Transport chiefs blamed the increase in Easter travel on the public’s desire to make up for the loss of family visits and excursions during the pandemic. AA said drivers’ desire to travel was not alleviated by rising petrol costs, nor were concerns about gas station supplies when Just Stop Oil and Extinction Rebellion protesters prevented tankers from leaving some oil depots for weeks. Mr Rich said: “People’s desire to travel makes this Easter a bit like Christmas, with people seeing friends and relatives after not seeing them much during Covid. “Our research shows that people want to make the most of their holiday weekend. It shows the demand to do what we have been missing for the last two years. “Weather is a factor and encourages more travel, and people’s determination to travel outweighs concerns about fuel costs.”

Share or comment on this article: