Drivers warned of 'perfect storm'

Rob Preece

MOTORISTS in Yorkshire have been warned to expect “a perfect storm” of congestion and delays during the Bank Holiday weekend as families flock to seaside resorts and music fans head to Leeds Festival.

The Highways Agency expects 70,000 people to attend the three-day event in Bramham Park, while a further 40,000 are due to travel to another music festival in Cheshire.

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Disruption is also expected on the railways, where engineering work will extend journey times to and from the region by up to 20 minutes.

The AA predicts 16 million cars will be on the roads during the weekend, causing congestion from around mid-afternoon on Friday on popular routes.

The A1 northbound towards Yorkshire, the A64 towards Scarborough and the M6 towards Blackpool and the Lake District are likely to be among the busiest roads in the country, it said.

Traffic heading to Leeds Festival will be directed from the A1(M) to exit at junction 45 and use the local access roads West Woods Road and Paradise Way.

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An additional route will be available on Thursday, allowing traffic to leave the A1(M) at junction 44 and travel westbound along both lanes of the A64 westbound towards the festival site.

The A64 will therefore be closed to all eastbound traffic from the Fox and Grapes pub between midnight on Thursday and 5am on Friday.

Paul Leather, of the AA, said drivers should make sure they are ready for delays and plan their journeys.

“Unsettled weather makes the traffic more unpredictable, so people should check the weather and traffic reports before departing," he said.

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“However, come rain or shine, make sure you’re prepared for the journey, as you never know when you might hit traffic on a bank holiday.”

A survey by car insurance company ensure found more than half of respondents were planning a Bank Holiday trip.

Friday is likely to be the busiest day, with a quarter of people intending to take the day off and many others hoping to leave work early.

The survey found that beach resorts would be popular destinations, particularly the Isle of Wight, Blackpool and Brighton.

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More than 40 per cent of 18 to 25-year-olds plan to take a day trip during the weekend, with many expected to attend music festivals like Leeds Festival, the Creamfields event near Runcorn in Cheshire and Reading Festival in Berkshire.

A spokesman for the Highways Agency said: “These events bring extra traffic into the region and drivers are advised to plan extra time for their journey, take regular breaks and have drinking water with them.

Drivers should also ensure their vehicles are prepared for the journey, with plenty of coolant and fuel. Drivers are advised to leave plenty of time to travel to the music festivals and we are working with the festival organisers, the police and local authorities to minimise delays on the roads.”

The ensure poll showed that one in five people is planning a journey of more than four hours over the weekend. Nineteen per cent of respondents said they would avoid motorways completely.

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Engineering work between New Barnet and Welwyn Garden City in Hertfordshire will impact on rail services to and from Yorkshire. Grand Central passengers could see journey times extended by up to 20 minutes.

East Coast and First Hull Trains passengers may find their journeys are extended by up to 10 minutes.

Network Rail (NR) and the Association of Train Operating Companies said almost 30 per cent fewer rail replacement buses would be needed this year than during the August bank holiday period in 2009.

NR customer service director Robin Gisby said: “Passengers tell us that they would rather take another train or stay on one for longer than get on a bus, so we’ve listened and there will be significantly fewer replacement buses than this time last year.”