Saturday also saw disruption, with a number of ferries between Northern Ireland and Scotland cancelled, speed restrictions in place on some trains in Scotland, a “small number of flights” cancelled at Heathrow Airport due to “strong winds and airspace restrictions”, and some road closures in exposed areas.
Travel expert Simon Calder said 100 cancellations at Heathrow was “significant” and a much higher number than you would normally see on a typical Sunday.
Around 80 of the 100 flights cancelled were British Airways, Mr Calder said, and he estimated around 15,000 passengers would be affected.
A spokesperson for British Airways said on Saturday that adverse weather and restrictions on the number of flights able to take off and land had led to “a small number of cancellations”.
They added: “We’re offering free flight changes for those customers booked on short-haul services who don’t wish to travel this weekend, and we will be offering rebooking and refund options as always to those whose journeys are disrupted as a result of the restrictions.”
Ferry company DFDS said it had cancelled seven services between Dover and Calais due to strong winds.
Ferries which operate around Scotland and to Northern Ireland, have also been cancelled.
P&O Ferries said journeys between Larne and Cairnryan have been cancelled until at least 20:00 on Sunday.
NorthLink Ferries said it had cancelled all its sailings for the day, while CalMac cancelled a number of services and warned of “possible disruption” on other routes.
Network Rail warned that strong winds could “severely impact the railway, with train delays and cancellations”.
ScotRail warned that some routes have speed restrictions in place, which would lead to delays, cancellations and revisions of timetables. Disruption is expected until 16:00.
Great Western Rail said trains would not be running between Exeter Central and Okehampton or Barnstaple until around 18:00, due to the weather.
Motoring experts have said this will be the busiest weekend of travel of the year, with the RAC warning it could be a “pretty exhausting experience” and urging drivers to “be patient”.
The AA warned of a “perfect storm” of Christmas getaways and bad weather with a predicted 22.7 million drivers hitting the road on Saturday and 21.3 million on Sunday.
National Highways said that the A66 was closed in both directions to high-sided vehicles between the A1M and M6 due to strong winds.
The A19 Tees Flyover between the A66 and the A1046 are also closed to high-sided vehicles.
RAC spokesman Rod Dennis warned motorists about driving conditions: “With the weekend bringing a mix of strong winds along with heavy, and in some places wintry, showers, it’s going to make many of the estimated seven million getaway trips by car a pretty exhausting experience.”
He urged drivers to “be patient”, adding: “These are journeys that matter to us this time of year, don’t expect to get there the minute your sat-nav says you will.
“Allow yourself a bit of time to make it easy and get there safely.”
The RAC predicts that congestion hotspots could include:
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Both directions of the M1 to Gatwick via the M25 and the M23
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Liverpool to Chester on the M53
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Oxford to the south coast via the A34 and the M3
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The M25 to the south coast along the M3
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The Taunton to Almondsbury Interchange in Bristol heading down the M5.
The winds are expected to ease by Monday, but it is “absolutely not” looking like a white Christmas, according to Met Office meteorologist Alex Deakin.
Instead, the UK will see “a grey Christmas” which “is going to be very, very mild”, he said, with cloud and rain set to move in.
Away from the roads, the first of the rail closures taking place over the festive period began on Saturday, with a section of the Midland Main line will closed between London St Pancras and Bedford until 29 December as projects costing £29m are completed. This will affect travel to Luton Airport.
Source:
www.bbc.com
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