M54 repairs finished for Christmas getaway
Long-running roadworks that have caused disruption for drivers on the M54 are finally over in time for the Christmas getaway, highway bosses have said.
The motorway was closed last night on the eastbound carriageway from Junction 3 at Cosford to Junction 2 at the i54 for further repairs to the carriageway.
It followed work taking place earlier this month to repair concrete slabs in the carriageway after cracks were discovered in the road surface, resulting in several night closures.
But Highways England spokesman Joe Wilson said it was believed work had now finished. He said: "We've been happy with the repair work which we've done so far. Hopefully that's it."
It comes as millions of Britons will be hoping the transport network does not descend into chaos as they set off on journeys to visit friends and family over Christmas.
The annual festive getaway – combined with last-minute present buying and regular commuting – will lead to packed trains and heavy congestion on the roads. Some 31 million car journeys will take place in nine days up to and including Boxing Day, according to the RAC.
The motoring organisation expects tomorrow to be the busiest day, with 4.1 million journeys as people head to their holiday destination on Christmas Eve.
An AA poll of more than 29,000 motorists found that about 40 per cent will drive at least 20 miles on each of the three days up to Christmas Day.
National Express said today will be the most popular day for coach travel. The operator said it has added an extra 77,000 seats to its capacity over Christmas because of high demand.
It believes this is partly due to major alterations on the rail network because of engineering work up to January 3.
Network Rail said 20,000 of its workers will carry out almost 500 improvement projects across Britain over the festive season.
This will see rail links to Britain's two busiest airports severed.
At Heathrow, the normal one-day closure on Christmas Day will be extended by three days due to Crossrail works, meaning neither Heathrow Express nor Heathrow Connect trains will run from London Paddington station.
The disruption at Gatwick will last even longer, with the main line serving the airport blocked for 10 days due to engineering works.
The West Coast main line will be closed between Crewe and Stafford until December 29, while there is also a shut-down on lines from London Liverpool Street to Colchester, Ipswich and Norwich.
