Holidaymakers heading towards the south west of England are facing mounting congestion on the roads.

The AA said its first “amber traffic warning” remains in place until 3pm on Friday and between 11am and 3pm on Saturday, writes Neil Lancefield, PA Transport Correspondent.

This is due to a combination of the first switchover days for holiday lets during the school summer holidays in England and Wales, a rail strike, the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, and the start of the Football League season in England.

Fears of a repeat of last week’s horrendous delays on roads approaching the Port of Dover and Folkestone proved unfounded, but queues are building on routes towards the south and south-west of England.

Traffic is slow-moving on the M4/M5 interchange near Bristol, the M3 near Winchester, Hampshire and the A303 past Stonehenge, Wiltshire.

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Jack Cousens, head of roads policy for the AA, said: “Our amber traffic warning remains in place as the summer holiday season continues, so drivers should be prepared to encounter congestion.

“We are really pleased that Dover and Folkestone are at minimal disruption and we don’t have repeats of the jams last week.

“This is testament to the work of the Kent Resilience Forum and others who put changes in place earlier in the week.

“However, routes to the south west are particularly busy at the moment so people should have plenty of water and food in their cars just in case the worst happens.

“Saturday traffic may be busier as holidaymakers mix with those affected by rail strikes, as well as people attending sporting events such as EFL (Englsih Football League) Championship matches, Liverpool V Man City at the King Power Stadium (in Leicester) and the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.”

Tens of thousands of families saw the start of their cross-Channel journeys ruined last weekend as the roads approaching Dover were gridlocked, leading to delays of several hours.