Snow and congestion to cause Easter traffic problems
Saturday, 22 Mar 2008 08:01
Snow, congestion and rail delays contribute to Easter weekend traffic
Snow, congestion and rail delays are to contribute to an Easter weekend hampered by traffic disruption.
Yorkshire and Lincolnshire saw snow fall overnight and though only rain and sleet are expected for the south, the Met Office has claimed there could also be snow on Saturday night, with even London possibly affected.
Although the RAC had said a "calm" weekend was expected on the nation's roads, spokesman Neil Thompson warned on Friday of huge congestion, with some 16 million cars predicted to be taking to the road for Easter getaways.
Traffic jams are predicted on the M5 between Bristol and the West Country, the M6 through the West Midlands, the M4 between London and the M4/M5 interchange in Gloucestershire, the M1 from junctions 25 to 29 and all roads connected to M5 around London.
And though Network Rail's chief executive Iain Coucher said the Easter weekend would not be a repeat of the New Year rail disruption, he admitted four days of engineering work would affect busy areas, including the West Coast Main Line, the East Coast Main Line and London's Clapham Junction and Liverpool Street stations.
"We know our Easter improvement programme impacts on passengers but the demands on our rail network are growing and we need to invest to deliver a better service," he said.
"Our challenge is to do this invisibly - to get in, rip up the old railway, put in a new, better one and then get out on time while causing the least amount of disruption."