Christmas travel chaos erupts as drivers left stranded in Dover delays - Cars stuck for five hours

Sparked by unplanned industrial action by Eurotunnel staff in France, heavy traffic began building up on the roads as travellers look for alternative modes of transport.

Dover officials have warned that only those who have advance bookings will be able to travel this morning.

Motorists have also been warned that in town, they should only use two lanes.

Reports suggest some people were stuck in queues for more than five hours overnight while lorries continued to queue for miles up the M20.

According to the latest advice from the RAC, drivers should avoid travelling if possible today and avoid roads until after 6pm when traffic is likely to ease.

The British breakdown assistance company estimates 13.5 million journeys by car will take place between Friday and Sunday as people scramble to get home for the holidays.

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The RAC has warned the M25, M3, M1 and M20 will be the worst affected roads today.

In a bid to ease the congestion, National Highways has siad it will remove more than 1,000 miles of roadworks on England’s motorways and A roads.

The move will mean more than 98 per cent of the road network will be free of roadworks until January 2.

Train services faired poorly yesterday as Storm Pia caused hundreds of trains to be cancelled for over three hours.

All trains moving north from London Euston were cancelled for hours and dozens departing from King’s Cross were delayed.

Some passengers are even reported to have slept in St Pancras after their travel plans were disrupted.

However, further description is also expected as major railway hubs such as Paddington will close on Christmas Eve for engineering works.

Queues have been steadily moving at St Pancras station today on what is expected to be the busiest travel day for Christmas getaways.

Since the early hours of this morning, hundreds of passengers have been arriving at St Pancras to board their train to destinations including Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam and more.

The queue has been stretching around the station as they're experiencing higher levels of passengers than normal. While it's not usual, there are more people because of yesterday's short strike action.

While no trains have been cancelled today, passengers remain cautiously calm as they check the departure boards ahead of their journey.

Eurostar says an extra two services are running today to France to ensure passengers reach their destination today.

Throughout the morning, the Port of Dover said there has been a 90-minute wait time ahead of French Border controls for tourists as they continue to clear up the disruption caused by industrial action at the Channel Tunnel yesterday.

It's anticipated there will be more traffic throughout the day as more people begin to make their journeys across the country and those making trips out to the UK by ferry or plane.

A spokesperson for Eurostar told GB News: "A full Eurostar timetable out of London, Paris and Brussels is running today with eight extra services added and over 10,000 extra seats available for the next three days. Eurostar’s full focus today and over the weekend is on getting people home and on holiday for Christmas.

"At such an important time of year for families and friends getting together, extra trains have been organised to help customers whose plans were disrupted, and all staff have been mobilised to provide support. Customers can exchange their tickets for free or claim a refund.

"Although yesterday’s events were out of Eurostar’s control, the team is working around the clock to provide support to all customers affected and is committed to ensuring they reach their destinations in time to have a fantastic festive period. "