AA reveals roads you must avoid if you want to dodge travel chaos when driving home for Christmas
THE AA has warned festive motorists to avoid certain roads if they want to bypass any travel chaos.
With Christmas Day falling on a Monday this year, the motoring organisation has urged drivers to dodge popular routes ahead of the festive weekend.
The AA has predicted that Friday 22nd and Saturday 23rd will be the two busiest days for motorists zooming home to spend Christmas with loved ones.
An estimated 16.1 million cars will hit the road on December 22 and 16.4 million on December 23.
The M25, the M5 between Bristol and Weston-Super-Mare and the M6 around Birmingham were identified as motorway stretches where bumper-to-bumper conditions are likely.
Long delays are also anticipated on the M1 from Luton northwards, the M60 and M62 in north-west England, the M4 which runs between west London and south-west Wales, and the M27 in Hampshire.
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To avoid the chances of a breakdown, AA president Edmund King recommended people carry out vehicle checks before setting off, such as on tyres, fuel, oil, coolant and screen wash.
He said: "While Friday 22 December and Saturday 23 December look set to be the busiest travelling days, the unsettled weather forecast could lead to additional delays so drivers should drive to the conditions and slow down where necessary.
"New Year's Day will be the quietest day on the roads which is probably a good thing especially if drivers have been partying the previous evening.
"Drivers can still be breathalysed and lose their licence for driving over the limit the morning after."
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It comes after one motoring expert revealed the exact date to travel this Christmas to save big on fuel.
Sam Sheehan, the motoring editor for , shared the best time to beat the Christmas rush and save yourself money in the process.
Sam said timing your journey correctly could see you averaging as much as 36mph around major cities like London instead of crawling along in jams.
He identified December 18 as the best date for Brits to set out, with journey time slashed for residents of Bristol, Manchester, Cardiff, Leeds and London.