Traffic hell has begun this afternoon with Britons bracing themselves for gridlocked roads and hour long queues as they travel home after their four-day Easter getaway.
An estimated two million holidaymakers are making return journeys today with the worst congestion expected in the southwest of England and in the Home Counties.
There are already long queues on the M5 between Bristol and Taunton with motorists in bumper-to-bumper tailbacks.
On some parts of the motorway traffic has clogged up causing it to crawl to 16mph with 30 minute delays.
Long queues are also reported on the A102M Blackwall tunnel in Greenwich, southeast London.
While Brits trying to jet back from Portugal are facing misery as they described ‘carnage’ at Faro International Airport as staff shortages cause three-hour long delays.
There are already long queues on the M5 between Bristol and Taunton with motorists caught in tailbacks
On some parts of the motorway traffic has clogged up causing vehicles to crawl to 16mph with 30 minute delays
The threat of floods across the country has already raised fears they could cause Easter travel chaos today on the roads with two warnings and 96 alerts in place across England.
Motorists have been advised to head out on the roads later this evening with the heaviest rain expected to fall in the corridor from the southwest of England and up to East Anglia, reports Sky News, causing difficult driving conditions.
Forecasters said there is a risk of hail and thunder late today.
The RAC warned ahead of the Easter break it ‘could be carmageddon’ and said heavy traffic and ‘lengthy queues can be expected along routes to the usual hotspots’.
The roadside assistance company and transport analysis firm Inrix said 2.01million leisure journeys would be made by car on Easter Monday, with the lengthiest delays expected between 10am and noon.
Kathyrn Chalk, meteorologist at the Met Office said: ‘We’ll see further spells of heavy rain coming in, pushing its way northwards through Easter Monday.
‘Probably a damp start, especially across Wales, central England and northeastern parts as well with further heavy spells of rain here.
‘Further towards the south, if we do see any clouds breaking up we could see heavy showers again in the afternoon.’
Long queues are also reported on the A102M Blackwall tunnel in Greenwich, in southeast London
Traffic hell has begun this afternoon with Britons bracing themselves for gridlocked roads and hour long queues as they travel home after their four-day Easter getaway
GOOD FRIDAY: Easter bank holiday traffic builds up with speed restrictions in place on the M5 near Bristol
Tourists described how electronic gates at Faro International Airport were not working amid alleged staff shortages
Yvette Hughes was among the holidaymakers stuck in chaos at Faro airport today
Drivers are urged to reduce their speeds, as rain can reduce visibility, and give themselves more time to brake on slippery road surfaces – suggesting a gap of at least four seconds between traffic.
The showers could bring between 5mm and 15mm of rainfall, forecasters said.
Areas in the north of England and Scotland are expected to be much sunnier throughout the day and experience less rain, the weather service said.
It will remain cloudy for much of the north tonight with outbreaks of rain continuing while much of the south will experience drier conditions.
On Tuesday, Scotland and Northern Ireland will see cloudy outbreaks of rain, while England and Wales will see sunny spells and showers that turn heavier in the afternoon.
Meanwhile, in Portugal travellers claimed they have endured three-hour delays at Faro International Airport, alleging that e-Gates malfunctions and a lack of information from airlines.
They described ‘carnage at the airport’, with children crying and some struggling passengers passing out while waiting in vain to arrive or travel back home to Britain.
A Portuguese police source claimed the disruptions at Faro airport were an ‘occurrence of a peak in passenger arrivals’ and noted the ‘situation is already normalising’, according to local reports.
Passengers queue for ferries at the Port of Dover in Kent over the holiday weekend
The travel chaos comes as staycationers back home in the UK are enduring lengthy waits on traffic-clogged motorways.
The disruption in Portugal comes as travellers hoping to make the most of the Easter weekend found themselves trapped in ‘horrendous’ 20-mile long queues on major motorways in the UK.
Staycationers were clogging up routes to Devon and Cornwall, while holidayers also experienced lengthy delays at the Port of Dover in Kent.
And there was ‘significant’ congestion around the M25 and roads in the South West and South East of England.
