Holidaymakers heading out for the Easter weekend are having to contend with 20-mile traffic jams, two-hour delays at Dover and rail chaos on Friday afternoon.
Holiday traffic caused “pretty appalling” queues 20 miles long at the M4 and M5 junction near Bristol, adding 45 minutes to journey times as around 2.6 million car journeys were expected to be made on Good Friday.
There was also significant traffic congestion on the M25; Traffic was especially bad on the west side, where queues of up to 40 minutes were faced.
Meanwhile, the Port of Dover has warned motorists approaching the Channel crossing face two-hour waits for processing.
Meanwhile, Stansted Express train services from London were disrupted all day on Friday as 175,000 people left Stansted this weekend.
The disruption affecting trains between Liverpool Street and Stansted Airport and Cambridge North is expected to last until 3pm.
Additionally, due to engineering works, there will be no train services to and from London Euston (except London Overground) over the Easter weekend.
The Elizabeth Line, London Overground and DLR are partially closed from Friday to Monday for maintenance. There are also serious delays on the Central Line.
South Western Rail, Southern, Thameslink and Southeastern routes will also be disrupted this weekend.
Network Rail advised passengers to avoid the West Coast mainline during the bank holiday, adding that engineering works would also affect southern routes to and from London.
Scroll down for more details and latest travel updates.
‘Pretty scary’ 20km queues on major motorways
14:47 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks
Holiday traffic caused “pretty appalling” queues 20 miles long on major highways and added another 45 minutes to journey times.
Around 2.6 million car journeys were expected to be made today, with “significant” traffic congestion around the M25 and on roads in the South West and South East by midday.
The RAC said southbound holidaymakers were causing much of the congestion after forecasters predicted sunnier weather in the region over the next few days.
Queues of 15 to 32 kilometers were seen at the M4 and M5 junction near Bristol, adding 45 minutes to journey times.
Meanwhile, the west bank of the M25 was described as “pretty bad” and “much worse than normal”, with queues of 40 minutes.
The upper part of the M20 was also very busy with congestion heading towards Folkestone.
Traffic as a stopped truck blocks the A1261 at Blackwall
12:59 , Will Mata
Traffic on one lane of the A1261 came to a standstill as a lorry stopped at Blackwall.
There are currently queues of approximately 8 kilometers on the northbound section.
Disruption at Kensington Olympia is now expected by the end of the day
12:40 , Will Mata
Disruption on the route from Overground to Kensington Olympia is expected to continue until the end of the day.
National Rail said the signaling fault reported this morning has not been resolved on the route and the problem will continue.
Lines reopen after storm damage but delays still expected
12:33 , Will Mata
National Rail says overhead cable problems at Stanstead Mountfitchet have now been resolved.
The line north from London to Essex has now reopened but the knock-on effect is causing disruption.
Latest reports indicate that this situation will last until 14:00.
Photos show crowds of travelers at King’s Cross St Pancras as Easter getaway continues
10:51 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks
Serious delays on the Central Line
09:47 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks
TfL says there are serious delays between Epping and Loughton on the Central Line while it fixes the signal fault at Debden.
There are also minor delays on the rest of the line due to train cancellations.
Northbound trains not arriving at Kensington Olympia after signal error
09:34 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks
A fault in the signaling system means northbound services cannot call Kensington Olympia.
National Rail says Northbound Overground and Southern rail services will run non-stop between West Brompton and Shepherds Bush.
This outage is expected to last until noon.
Storm damage cancels major train services to and from Liverpool Street
08:52 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks
🌳⚡️‼️ #StanstedMountfitchet – Strong winds knocked down trees and damaged electrical cables yesterday evening. As a result, there will be no trains running between London Liverpool Street and Stansted Airport/Cambridge.
🚄There are a limited number of train services between London…
— National Railway (@nationalrailenq) March 29, 2024
Major disruption expected on Liverpool Street trains, including the Stansted Express, until 10.30am
08:47 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks
National Rail says there are no trains running between London Liverpool Street and Stansted Airport and Cambridge due to problems with overhead lines.
A ‘do not travel’ warning was issued to customers planning to benefit from these services.
The outage is expected to last until 10.30am. Affected services:
“Some lines have been blocked due to overhead line problems at Stansted Mountfitchet,” the National Rail website says.
“Train services passing through this station may be cancelled, postponed by up to 60 minutes or revised.
“Major disruption is expected by 10.30am.
“Customers are asked NOT to travel between London Liverpool Street and Stansted Airport and Cambridge.
“Due to overhead cable issues between Harlow Town and Stansted Mountfichet, there are currently no trains running between London Liverpool Street and Stansted Airport and Cambridge.”
DLR partially closed all weekend
07:48 , Lydia Chantler-Hicks
The DLR is partially closed from Good Friday until Easter Monday and there is no service between Tower Gateway and Shadwell.
There will also be no service between Westferry/Canary Wharf and Stratford/Canning Town.
Only Bank-bound trains will serve West India Dock. Replacement buses operate between Westferry and Canning Town.
Elizabeth line outage
07:20 , Matt Watts
TfL said there will be discounted services between Paddington and Maidenhead/Heathrow between Good Friday and Saturday. All trains will start and finish at Paddington National Railway station. Heathrow Terminal 4, West Drayton, Langley, Slough, Burnham and Maidenhead will be served by two trains per hour. West Ealing will be served by four trains an hour. Ealing Broadway, Southall and Hayes & Harlington will be served by six trains per hour. There will be no services between Abbey Wood/Stratford and Paddington from Good Friday until Easter Monday. Trains will run between Shenfield and Liverpool Street National Rail station (which does not serve Whitechapel) and between Paddington National Rail station and Heathrow/Reading.
London Overground affected
07:18 , Matt Watts
Transport for London warns between Good Friday and Easter Monday; Due to planned works there will be no service between Highbury & Islington and New Cross / New Cross Gate / Clapham Junction.