Passengers at the Eurostar terminal at St Pancras station in central London yesterday (Photo: PA)

The summer holidays have gotten off to a chaotic start, with major delays and cancellations on roads, railways and airports this weekend.

Coordinated arson attacks on the French rail network hours before the start of the Olympics on Friday led to the cancellation of one in four cross-Channel trains, with Eurostar passengers told to postpone their journeys if possible.

Although trains from the UK to France were fairly regular, those hoping to return home were faced with long delays. There were also problems for motorists, with routes to Devon and Cornwall in the South West congested with traffic so heavy it led to delays of up to two hours.

Flights were cancelled at Heathrow yesterday, including several to the US. Arrivals at Gatwick from Orlando, Florida, were also cancelled on Sunday morning.

Airports have struggled with the weight of passengers, with long queues also seen in Manchester.

In London, the Piccadilly and Waterloo & City Tube lines are partially closed, as is the Overground. TfL is reporting that the DLR is also partially suspended today.

  • 17m ago

    This is set to be the busiest weekend of the year for travel

  • 19m ago

    Some London Underground lines are limited today


    • This is set to be the busiest weekend of the year for travel

    With school holidays in full swing, the expectation is that 2.9 million trips will be made today.

    Along with 3.6 million trips yesterday, this would be the busiest weekend of the year and the second busiest summer weekend since 2015, second only to 2022, following the end of pandemic lockdowns.

    The Port of Dover said it was also expecting its busiest weekend yet, with 11,000 tourist cars passing through yesterday alone.

    A port spokesman said traffic was “flowing freely” on Saturday morning and reported wait times of just five minutes at border control.

    Brittany Ferries – which operates between the UK, France and Spain – said most overnight sailings were already full this weekend but there was still space for daytime sailings.

    Travel association Abta has estimated that more than two million Britons will travel abroad this weekend.


    Some London Underground lines are limited today

    Those traveling through the capital should be aware that some metro lines are not fully open.

    Two of them will be partially closed all day, while the Docklands Light Railway is experiencing temporary disruption due to a trespasser.

    TFL status update this morning

    The affected lines are:

    • Partial closure of the Piccadilly Line throughout the day, with no service between Kings Cross St Pancras and Cockfosters
    • London Overground partial closure with no service between Hackney Downs and Chingford
    • Part of the DLR suspended between Tower Gateway/Bank and Poplar/Canary Wharf due to a trespasser on the track at Westferry.

    There are also minor delays on the Bakerloo, Elizabeth and Hammersmith and City lines.

    Difficult start to summer holidays due to transport disruption

    Good morning and welcome to our live coverage of transportation issues on a big summer getaway weekend.

    Unfortunately, anyone heading to or from summer vacation has bigger problems than which podcast to listen to on their road trip this weekend.

    There were major road, rail and flight disruptions on Friday and Saturday. If you’ve been waiting until today hoping Sunday would be a little quieter, we’re rooting for you.

    We will update you with any important shipping news as it becomes available.

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