THE worst time to travel over Easter Bank Holiday weekend has been revealed as 21million Brits are expected to hit the road.
The weekend is set to be the busiest Easter since Covid restrictions were lifted, despite soaring fuel prices.
The Royal Automobile Club has urged any motorists to plan ahead as it predicts nearly 21million leisure journeys over the four-day weekend.
According to the AA, coastal routes will be especially busy alongside major arteries including the M4, M25, M5, M40 and M1.
The RAC forecast that roads will be at their busiest on Good Friday, April 2 as 3.3million drivers are planning trips.
On Thursday April 2 and Easter Sunday 2.3million motorists are expected to hit the road.
Saturday April 4 and Easter Monday could both see 3million trips made.
The RAC added that 6.7million journeys are still unaccounted for and as the weather warms up more ad hoc trips are to be expected.
The number of journeys shows that drivers aren’t changing their plans despite 31 per cent of motorists being increasingly worried about rising fuel costs, the RAC found.
Only 6 per cent expect to drive shorter distances and a further 6 per cent said they won’t drive at all due to fuel costs.
The RAC estimated that it is £19 more expensive to fill up a typical family car with diesel than it was on Good Friday last year, as the price of oil surged to almost £90 this morning.
To help with the surge in traffic, National Highways said it will remove 1,500 miles of roadworks over the Bank Holiday.
The chaos is expected to start after the schools break up for The Easter Holidays just before 3pm on Thursday.
Experts warn of delays of more than 40 minutes on the M25 clockwise between J15 and J19, this will swap to anti-clockwise at around 4pm.
Several major motorways will be congested on Friday from 10am until the evening. The M5 and M25 are expected to see severe delays.
For Saturday the worst times to travel will be in the morning between 10am and midday, especially on the M42 which could see queues of 50 minutes.
As travellers return on Easter Monday there could be delays of over an hour again in the South West, while travel times could be doubled on the M25 in the afternoon.
RAC mobile servicing and repairs team leader Sean Kimberlin said: “We expect traffic levels to be consistently high from Thursday when many schools break up.
“We advise drivers to plan for the best time to travel if they want to avoid significant queues, especially in traffic hotspot areas such as the M5 heading towards Devon and Cornwall and the M25.
“Congestion is likely to be at its worst from 10am from Thursday to Saturday and on Easter Monday, so leaving early in the morning is the best way to avoid the jams.
Families hoping to catch the ferry to France for an Easter getaway should also plan ahead.
The Port of Dover is anticipating increased traffic all of this week and into mid-April.
Chief executive Doug Bannister said: “Between Thursday 2nd and Sunday 19th April, we will welcome in the region of 37,000 cars through the port.
“To help ensure a smooth departure, we kindly ask all customers travelling with our ferry partners not to arrive any earlier than two hours before their scheduled sailing, just as you would if departing from a UK airport.
“We appreciate everyone’s patience, should there be any additional waiting time due to the increase in traffic levels.”
