The rail, road, flight and ferry travel chaos to expect this Christmas
Travel chaos predicted this Christmas – what you need to know
- The festive travel period in the UK is anticipated to be the busiest of the decade, with record numbers expected across all transport networks.
- Airports including London Heathrow, Birmingham, and Manchester foresee their busiest Christmas ever, with peak travel days on 19 and 28 December, and 2 and 4 January.
- Railways will experience their busiest days before Christmas on 20 and 22 December, with significant engineering works affecting key routes like the West Coast Main Line and London Waterloo after Christmas.
- Roads are predicted to be busiest on Christmas Eve, with Christmas Day being the optimum driving day, though specific motorways and junctions will experience severe congestion.
- Coach services are increasing to mitigate rail closures, while the Port of Dover expects peak ferry traffic between 19 and 21 December, advising travellers not to arrive more than two hours early.