Christmas travel: UK travellers hit by delays on roads and trains
Half of all UK drivers took to the roads on Christmas Eve to visit friends and family
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Travellers making last-minute journeys home for Christmas had to contend with busy roads and reduced train services on Christmas Eve.
Half of UK motorists took to the roads on the day before Christmas, according to the AA, with one in five making festive journeys to see friends and family.
There is a reduced service on most train lines across the country, alongside closures at key stations for engineering works. Disruption on some train networks is expected to last until the start of January.
Christmas Eve is expected to be a busy day on UK roads, with drivers warned to prepare for delays.
Half of drivers will be making festive journeys on Christmas Eve, says the AA.
While there is reduced commuter traffic, this will be offset by an increased number of leisure travellers, as more than one in five will visit friends and family today.
According to the AA, 41 per cent of young drivers will drive to visit friends and family today.
If you're in London this Christmas, here's everything you need to know about getting around the capital during the festive season.
Includes details of train closures, engineering works and last services on Christmas Eve.
There will be 2.5 million leisure trips today, says the RAC.
Britain's roads will be busiest between 11am and 1pm. The RAC is advising motorists to set off at other times to avoid delays.
According to the association, the busiest section of road will be the M1 northbound, between junction 21 (Coventry/Leicester) and junction 26 (Nottingham/Ripley). On this section of the M1, there will be a delay of up to 22 minutes.
“It’s vitally important every driver planning a trip gives their car a once over to make sure it’s up to the job, as a single breakdown can bring some roads to a grinding halt, slowing down the Christmas getaway for all of us," RAC Patrol of the Year Mark Souster said.
"A few moments spent checking things like fuel, oil, coolant and screen wash levels and the condition and pressure of tyres could make the difference between a stress-free journey and one plagued by a breakdown.
"It might feel like yet another thing to think about before Christmas but it’s a fact that many of the breakdowns we see are avoidable if drivers just do these few checks before they set out.”
Trains will run earlier last services tonight.
The last trains from London terminals to other British cities on Christmas Eve will depart as early as 6pm. Check National Rail to see when the last trains from London are departing tonight.
From The Independent's travel correspondent Simon Calder:
"From Penzance, the last train that will get travellers further than Cornwall and Devon departs at 4pm on Christmas Eve – but only as far as Plymouth, where you will need to change for a service to Bristol.
"And anyone who misses the 5.30pm from Glasgow Central to London Euston this afternoon faces a wait of two-and-a-half days."
Major engineering work is taking place on various train networks this Christmas, which is due to last until 2 January 2019.
Until 2 January, all routes between London Victoria and Clapham Junction are closed. There will be no Gatwick Express or Southern services to and from Victoria, due to work taking place to renew the track at Battersea Pier Junction. Travellers are advised to travel via London Bridge instead.
Various lines in and out of London Paddington are shut today for work on Crossrail. On Christmas Eve, no trains will run between London Paddington and Heathrow Airport, although a shuttle service is available.
Improvement work is taking place on lines out of London Liverpool Street. There will be no service between Liverpool Street and Shenfield/Billericay until 1 January. There is no service between Liverpool Street and Ingatestone. Buses replace trains today.
Services to and from London Euston will be reduced, with two per hour running between London Euston and West Midlands/Manchester Piccadilly. Services to and from Holyhead will run between Crewe and Holyhead only. Services to and from Blackpool North, Shrewsbury and Wrexham General will not run. The 16:40 London Euston to Edinburgh service will be diverted to run to Glasgow Central instead of Edinburgh.
A reduced service of two trains per hour will operate between London St Pancras and Bedford. There will be a replacement bus service (direct) between Bedford and Corby and between Bedford, Corby and Wellingborough. An hourly service will run between Kettering and Nottingham, and also between Kettering and Sheffield (via Derby and Chesterfield).
There is signalling work in the Liverpool area. East Midlands Trains between Norwich and Liverpool Lime Street will be diverted between Manchester Oxford Road and Liverpool Lime Street, not calling at Warrington Central, Widnes or Liverpool South Parkway. These train services will additionally call at Newton-le-Willows.
Northern Rail trains between Manchester Oxford Road and Liverpool Lime Street will run between Manchester Oxford Road and Warrington Central. On Virgin Trains, from 9.15pm today until the end of service on 1 January, trains will be diverted to run via Warrington Bank Quay, and will not call at Runcorn.
There are other engineering works happening around the UK. Travellers should check National Rail for details.
The Independent's Simon Calder has put together a handy guide to the travel disruption to expect this Christmas, covering engineering works, strikes and other transport options for travellers without cars this festive season.
There is also chaos in the air today.
From The Independent's Simon Calder:
"Several flights have been delayed which will result in many passengers failing to be where they need to be by midnight on Christmas Eve.
Passengers with TUI in the Dominican Republic say their Punta Cana-Gatwick flight is running almost two days behind schedule, and will now not arrive until Boxing Day. The Independent has contacted the company for a response.
The expected midnight arrival on Norwegian from New York is now not expected until this afternoon.
An easyJet flight to Madeira is leaving Gatwick six hours late, with the resulting inbound trip possibly not reaching the Sussex airport before midnight.
An Edinburgh-Gatwick flight is currently eight hours late."
The M1 northbound is set to be the most congested road today, according to the RAC, particularly between junctions 21 and 26, as travellers make festive journeys home.
According to live M1 traffic alerts, there is currently congestion near junction 23 (Loughborough).
There are also rail strikes to contend with this Christmas, with staff on some networks striking in a dispute over the role of train guards.
South Western Railway, which operates trains in and out of Britain's busiest station London Waterloo, will be affected on Thursday 27 December and New Year's Eve. See more details here.
Then on 29 December, Northern Rail staff will strike for the 20th Saturday in a row. The majority of trains will be cancelled with very few services running after 5pm – affecting travellers from Merseyside to Tyneside.
If you're flying immediately after Christmas from a London airport, check which train services are running.
On Boxing Day, services to Stansted Airport will start and end at Tottenham Hale station, as Liverpool Street is shut from the last train tonight to the morning of 27 December.
There is no Gatwick Express until 2 January. Travellers for Gatwick Airport should use services from London Bridge or Blackfriars.
Travellers for Southend Airport will be disrupted by engineering work around Liverpool Street station.
From 23 December until Boxing Day and on 30 December, there is no TfL Rail or Heathrow Express service from London Paddington to Heathrow Airport.
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