No Easter getaway rush to be expected

MILLIONS of people remain cautious about socialising over Easter despite lockdown rules being relaxed, a new survey suggests.

A quarter of the 1,200 drivers polled for the RAC said they are not planning a leisure trip by car over the bank holiday weekend because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Motorists expect to make just 5.6 million trips by car to see friends and family between Good Friday and Easter Monday, the research indicates.

Easter is normally one of the busiest weekends of the year on UK roads, with 12.2 million leisure trips planned in 2019.

Lockdown restrictions in England are due to be eased from March 29, with two households or up to six people allowed to meet outdoors, and the formal end of the “stay at home” rule.

Wales will lift its “stay local” requirement today.

RAC traffic spokesman Rod Dennis said: “What is traditionally one of the busiest weekends for leisure trips in normal times could turn out to be anything but in 2021, with the pandemic continuing to have a big impact on drivers’ plans to see friends and family this Easter break.”

He added: “Drivers have clearly got their eyes on Monday, April 12 which is the earliest date when lockdown restrictions could be eased further.”

Transport information analysts Inrix believe the worst congestion in road use could be on the A303 near Stonehenge, Wiltshire; the A3 and A205 in south London, the A66 near Keswick, Cumbria; and the M5 in north Somerset.