Rain, wind to disrupt travel for UK bank holiday weekend as 20 million motorists hit the road

By Eric Leister, Meteorologist

April 28,2016; 11:25AM,EDT

 

 

A series of weather systems will bring the threat for daily rainfall in the United Kingdom during the upcoming bank holiday weekend.
The final depression in the series to impact the U.K. will also unleash strong winds with the potential for travel delays on Monday.
Higher-than-normal travel is expected on U.K. highways this bank holiday. The RAC reported that more than 20 million drivers will take the road between Friday and Monday, with the heaviest traffic expected on Saturday.

The RAC added that the increase in expected travelers could be related to an earlier-than-normal Easter holiday this year, when Storm Katie unleashed travel-disrupting rain and wind.
Making matters worse for those traveling by train will be engineering work that will take place throughout the holiday weekend. Some areas that will be impacted by altered routes or changed train times include Glasgow, Manchester and Birmingham, according to CrossCountry.
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Saturday is expected to be the driest day of the bank holiday weekend with brief showers scattered across across the U.K., mostly in the afternoon. Most of the day will be dry with any showers generally lasting 20 minutes or less.
The threat for thunderstorms will have diminished by Saturday. At least three planes were apparently struck by lightning around London on Wednesday, according to The Telegraph.
The chilly flow of air from the arctic will also get cut off this weekend, ending the risk of snow outside of the highest elevations in the Highlands.
After rain pushes into Northern Ireland, Scotland and North West England on Saturday night, more showers are in the forecast for Sunday across the U.K.
The showers on Sunday will be most numerous in Wales and northern and western England during the morning. Brief downpours are possible and could limit visibility for travelers.
The weather will turn even more unsettled from Sunday night into Monday as a strengthening depression tracks north of Scotland.

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Steady rain will push from Northern Ireland and Scotland to northern England Sunday night into Monday. Rain will linger through the day on Monday across Scotland and northwestern Northern Ireland.
"The heaviest rain will target western Scotland early Monday morning, reducing visibility and heightening the risk of vehicles hydroplaning when traveling at highway speeds," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Kristina Pydynowski said.
"While downpours will lessen for the midday and afternoon hours of Monday, travelers will face additional windswept rain and spray from other vehicles."
Farther south, blustery showers will spread across Wales and England on Monday.

The strongest winds are expected across Northern Ireland and Scotland, where gusts to around 50 mph (80 km/h) are possible with localized gusts to 60 mph (95 km/h) along the coast and in the highest elevations. That could be enough to disrupt holiday travel and cause sporadic power cuts and tree damage.
Wind gusts of 30-40 mph (50-65 km/h) are possible elsewhere.
"Motorists heading home from the bank holiday may feel these winds tug at their vehicles," Pydynowski said. Minor flight delays are also possible.
"Monday will not start very windy around London," AccuWeather Meteorologist Courtney Spamer said. "However, winds will increase during the day."