The UK is braced for what is predicted to be the busiest festive travel period in a decade, with record-breaking crowds expected across all major transport networks. From packed airports to extensive railway engineering works, passengers face significant disruption during the Christmas and New Year getaway. The Independent has compiled exclusive data from dozens of transport organisations to map out the key pressure points and busiest days.
Airport Peak Days and Top Destinations
Air travel is set to hit unprecedented levels, with Fridays and Sundays emerging as the peak days across the board. The busiest dates for departures and arrivals are projected to be Friday 19 December, Sunday 28 December, Friday 2 January, and Sunday 4 January.
Several major airports are preparing for their busiest Christmas on record. London Heathrow, Birmingham, and Manchester airports all anticipate record passenger numbers. Specific peak days identified by airports include:
- Aberdeen & Glasgow: 19 December
- Bristol: Busiest overall day is 28 December, with 19-21 and 27-28 December peak for departures.
- Edinburgh: 19 and 22 December pre-Christmas; peak overall is 29 December.
- Luton: 19 December for departures, 4 January for arrivals.
- Manchester: 19 and 28 December.
- Southampton: 22 December.
Popular international destinations from UK airports this festive season include Alicante, Amsterdam, Dubai, Dublin, Geneva, and Tenerife.
Major Rail Disruption and Engineering Works
On the railways, the busiest days before Christmas are calculated to be Saturday 20 and Monday 22 December. Data from Trainline indicates the single busiest hour for passenger numbers is 10-11am on the Saturday before Christmas. The three most congested routes all involve London Euston, serving Birmingham New Street, Manchester Piccadilly, and Milton Keynes Central.
Passengers seeking quieter journeys should consider Wednesday 24 December, though services will finish early. No trains run on Christmas Day, with very limited services on Boxing Day.
Significant post-Christmas engineering works will cause severe disruption:
- West Coast Main Line: Closed from Milton Keynes to Rugby until 5 January for junction replacement.
- London Waterloo: Closed from Christmas Eve until 28 December inclusive.
- Leeds to York line: No services until 3 January.
- Preston to Carlisle (West Coast Main Line): Closed from New Year's Eve to 15 January, with a shuttle via the Settle and Carlisle Railway.
Crowds will surge again on Saturday 27 December and build towards a peak on the final festive weekend of 3 and 4 January.
Road, Coach and Ferry Congestion Hotspots
On the roads, the RAC predicts Christmas Eve could see the highest traffic volumes since the pandemic, with around 4.2 million getaway journeys. Christmas Day will be the quietest day for drivers.
The worst delays are forecast for Friday 19, Saturday 20, and Monday 22 December. Key congestion hotspots include:
- The M25, especially near Heathrow and Bluewater.
- The M4 between Bristol and Cardiff.
- The M5 south of Bristol and near the M6.
- The M6 through the West Midlands.
- The M60 around Manchester.
Note: The M27 in Hampshire will close between junctions 9 and 11 from 8pm on 24 December until 4am on 4 January.
Coach firms National Express and Flixbus are adding extra services, particularly for rail-displaced passengers, and will run hundreds of trips on Christmas and Boxing Day. Most local buses will not run on 25 December.
For ferry passengers, the Port of Dover warns the weekend before Christmas (19-21 December) will be extremely busy, with peak traffic between 6am and 1pm. Travellers are advised not to arrive more than two hours before their sailing.
