Christmas getaway warning as 85mph winds to batter UK: Millions of Brits race home to their families on busiest travel day of festive period with roads and airports already jam-packed

Britain's drivers were urged not to travel on major routes for six hours from 1pm today to avoid the worst Christmas holiday traffic as this year's getaway chaos began. Airports - Busiest day for departures on Sunday Meanwhile travel trade organisation Abta said an estimated four million people in the UK are preparing to spend the Christmas and New Year period overseas. Major rail closures for Christmas 2024 London Liverpool Street : Closed from December 25 until January 2 : Closed from December 25 until January 2 London Paddington : Closed between December 27 and 29 : Closed between December 27 and 29 No direct services between Crewe and Liverpool ; reduced service between Crewe and Manchester: December 28 until January 3 ; reduced service between and Manchester: December 28 until January 3 Cambridge area: CrossCountry, Greater Anglia, Great Northern and Thameslink services disrupted between December 27 and January 5 area:,, and services disrupted between December 27 and January 5 Harpenden to London St Pancras : No trains between December 21 and 29 to : No trains between December 21 and 29 Heathrow Express : No service between December 25 and 29 : No service between December 25 and 29 Great Western Railway : Diverted to/from Euston, or stopping/starting at Reading or Ealing Broadway Many train drivers and other crew members do not have Sunday working included in their contracts, with numerous operators often relying on them volunteering to work extra paid shifts to run timetabled services on that day. The AA traffic hotspots for Christmas 2024 Friday, December 20 M4/M5 interchange M3/M25 interchange M25 around Heathrow Airport M5/M6 interchange M6 J4-11 M27 J14-13 M4 around Cardiff and Newport A38 in Somerset A34 Oxford to Newbury Saturday, December 21 M1 around Meadowhall M25 around Bluewater M60 around the Trafford Centre A34 Oxford to Newbury M62 Simister Interchange Monday, December 23 M1 J10-15a M42 J3A-J8 A64 around York A303 around Stonehenge M5 J16-25 A34 Oxford to Newbury Drivers are being advised to pack essentials such as warm clothing, food, water and a fully-charged phone in case their journey takes longer than expected. HOW FAR DRIVERS ARE PLANNING TO TRAVEL THIS CHRISTMAS Distance Fri 20 Dec Sat 21 Dec Sun 22 Dec Mon 23 Dec Tue 24 Dec 0-50 miles 58% 57% 55% 57% 54% 51-100 miles 7% 6% 5% 6% 6% 101-150 miles 2% 2% 1% 2% 2% 151-200 miles 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 201-250 miles 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 251+ miles 1% - - - - Not driving 15% 17% 20% 18% 23% Don't know 15% 16% 16% 15% 13% Millions on the road 23.7 22.7 21.3 22.7 21.6% 'The network is also expected to be busier than usual, given it's the last weekend before Christmas.