...but road chaos as M4 is closed after fireworks factory explodes
AN EXPLOSION at a fireworks factory near the M4 caused chaos yesterday over the Easter weekend.
The motorway was shut in both directions between junctions 13 and 14 near Newbury, Berkshire, from 3pm after the blast threw debris over the area. Motorists following diversions then caused huge hold-ups on side roads.
Traffic jams frustrated football fans travelling to and from Wembley as well as beach-goers heading to the coast. There were also a seven-mile hold-up on the M25 west of London between junctions 12 and 15.
The closure of the QEII Bridge at the Dartford Crossing in the morning led to hold-ups in East London as motorists headed to the Blackwall Tunnel instead to cross the Thames. There were also queues on the A31 near Bournemouth, Dorset, and the A36 near Salisbury, Wiltshire. Meanwhile, a crash on the northbound section of the M6 near Coventry caused a seven-mile jam late yesterday morning.
Liverpool and Manchester City fans faced a round trip of up to 12 hours by car or coach to Wembley for the FA Cup semi-final after direct trains from both cities were cancelled for engineering works.
The Football Association laid on 100 free buses, but the clubs and fans criticised the decision not to move the game to the North-West.
The RAC said the good weather meant there would be even more than the 21million leisure trips over the bank holiday weekend than it originally forecast. On the railways, there was chaos on the West Coast Main Line. The 400mile route between London and Glasgow, already hit by planned engineering works, also saw its rail operator Avanti West Coast report broken down trains, engine faults and staff shortages curtailing services.
Holidaymakers heading to Europe from Manchester Airport arrived there from 3am yesterday to avoid missing flights.
The airport has been hit worse than most, with staff shortages causing flight cancellations and long queues for security – prompting bosses to tell travellers to arrive three hours before flights.
Elsewhere, other airports were less busy than at the start of the Easter holidays. BA grounded about 70 flights to and from Heathrow yesterday, but said most passengers were given a week’s notice. EasyJet cancelled about 30 flights to and from Gatwick.