Drivers have been warned of potentially “challenging conditions” as thunderstorms hit the UK ahead of what is expected to be the busiest summer bank holiday on the roads in more than a decade.
The RAC has estimated that 20 million leisure trips will be made by car between Friday and Monday August 31 – the highest figure since the motoring services company began analysing drivers’ summer bank holiday travel plans in 2015.
Bank holiday travel and weather warnings
Monday August 31 is a bank holiday in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, with some 10.6 million Britons planning an overnight trip in the UK during the long weekend, according to VisitEngland data.
The three-day weekend comes after heavy rain hit parts of the UK after a hot dry summer during which most of England and the whole of Wales was declared in drought.
Thunderstorm alerts and driving advice
On Thursday, a yellow thunderstorm warning is in place in parts of the Midlands, eastern and southern England, the North West, Yorkshire and Humber and Wales until 10pm as forecasters warned spray and sudden flooding could cause difficult driving conditions and some road closures.
A separate yellow thunderstorm alert is in place in parts of London, Essex, Kent and the East Midlands from 5pm on Thursday until 7am on Friday.
RAC breakdown spokeswoman Harriet Hernando said: “The hot spell has given way to thunderstorms in many parts of the country, and that combined with the bank holiday getaway traffic could make for challenging conditions on the roads.
“Our research shows that a record 20 million leisure trips will be made at some point over the weekend, and while the rain might put a dampener on some people’s plans, many will make the most of the last bank holiday before Christmas.
“Flash-flooding could be an issue, so the advice to drivers is to slow down as there’s a very real risk of aquaplaning and losing control.
“This is especially true with tyres that don’t have much tread, or if the vehicle is travelling too fast for the conditions.”
The RAC urged drivers to ensure tyres do not fall between the 1.6mm legal tread limit and are inflated to the correct pressure before setting out.
Traffic forecasts and congestion hotspots
Friday is “likely to be mired in traffic”, the company said, with 4.1 million getaway journeys predicted.
On Saturday, some 3.8 million leisure trips are estimated before 3.1 million on Sunday and 3.4 million the following day, when day-trippers will compete for space on the roads with people returning from short breaks.
A further 5.5 million journeys will be spread across the four-day period, with drivers unsure which exact day they will hit the road.
Transport analytics company Inrix identified a number of likely congestion hotspots, including:
- The M25 anticlockwise from Junction 17 in Hertfordshire to Junction 12 in Surrey, and clockwise from Junction 15 in Buckinghamshire to Junction 19 in Hertfordshire.
- The M5 south from Junction 15 near Bristol to Junction 23 in Somerset.
- The M1 south from Junction 16 in Northamptonshire to Junction 6 in Hertfordshire.
- The M5 north from Junction 11 in Gloucestershire to Junction 1 in the West Midlands.
Air and rail travel impact
For those travelling by air, budget airline Ryan Air said it was expecting to carry 860,000 passengers through 22 UK airports over its “busiest bank holiday weekend of the year”.
Network Rail is carrying out less engineering work than usual for the bank holiday weekend, but thousands of passengers face disruption when the East Coast Main Line is closed between London King’s Cross and Peterborough on Sunday for digital signalling work.
Impacts from other major work include no trains between Stafford and Wolverhampton on Sunday, and disruption in the Leeds area between Saturday and Monday August 31.
East Midlands Railway (EMR) has warned of disruption to its services over the long weekend because of a strike by workers in a dispute over safety.
A walkout by members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) at the train operator will hit services on Sunday and bank holiday Monday.
The company said it will run a “significantly reduced” timetable to and from London on both days, advising passengers to only travel if their journey is absolutely essential on these dates and to check before setting out.
The RAC commissioned research company FindOutNow to conduct the survey of 2,939 UK drivers on August 17.
