Travel news live: Christmas getaway delays as 100 Heathrow flights cancelled amid 80mph wind weather warnings

P&O Ferries have confirmed journeys between Larne and Cairnryan have been cancelled for at least 24 hours.

A spokesperson said: “Due to adverse weather conditions, all P&O Ferries sailings between Larne and Cairnryan have been cancelled from 2000 tonight (21st December) until at least 2000 tomorrow night (22nd December).

“We ask our customers please not to travel to either of the ports if their sailing has been cancelled, to avoid causing traffic congestion.

“All remaining sailings for today are fully booked, customers can manage their booking online or call us on 01304 884488 to amend or cancel their booking. We apologise for the inconvenience.”

Ferries have been cancelled and train services impacted as high winds hit Scotland’s Christmas getaway.

By noon on Saturday, CalMac, which operates ferry services on Scotland’s west coast, reported that sailings on 21 of its routes were cancelled for the day, with other services facing disruption.

Meanwhile, Northlink Ferries, which runs services between Aberdeen and the Orkney and Shetland isles, also reported disruption.

It said “adverse weather conditions” meant a sailing between Kirkwall on Orkney and Lerwick in the Shetland Isles was cancelled, along with sailings between Aberdeen and Lerwick, which were scheduled for Saturday evening.

Rail operator ScotRail announced that speed restrictions would be in place for part of the route between Glasgow and Oban/Mallaig, and the Inverness service to Kyle/Wick.

The Met Office have warned of a “grey Christmas”, disappointing those who were hoping for snow.

With the weather due to turn milder in the coming days, cloudy and unsettled weather is set for 25 December.

Millions of drivers have been urged to be patient on the roads as the UK prepares for a “perfect storm” of the Christmas getaway and bad weather.

Roads and public transport could be disrupted by strong gusts after the Met Office announced yellow warnings for parts of the country.

The AA predicted 23.7 million drivers would hit the road on Friday, making it the busiest day on the roads since the group’s records began in 2010.

It projected that Saturday would see 22.7 million drivers and Sunday 21.3 million.

A spokesperson for the group said: “With more than 20 million car journeys expected on both Saturday and Sunday if the congestion wasn’t enough of a headache, the inclement weather could create the perfect storm.

“We advise those heading out to allow extra time to travel and increase the distance between themselves and other road users.”

Heathrow Airport said “a small number of flights” have been cancelled on Saturday due to “strong winds and airspace restrictions”.

A spokesperson said: “This will ensure the vast majority of passengers can still safely travel as planned.

“We know how important travel at this time of year is and have extra colleagues on hand in our terminals to support people on their journeys.

“We encourage passengers to check in with their airlines for the latest information about their flights.”

Rail passengers the length of Britain face delays and cancellations as a combination of staff shortage and bad weather disrupt schedules.

In southeast England, Great Northern and Thameslink have apologies to passengers for “cancellations and service changes” due to “a shortage of train drivers today”. The rail operators link Cambridge with London, Gatwick airport and the south coast.

On Sunday, passengers on Northern in northwest England will experience widespread cancellations, with all trains axed on six routes including Blackpool South to Preston and Oxenholme to Windermere.

The train operator said: “Recently, we have seen higher levels of cancellations in the North West and for that we are sorry. The underlying reason is train crew availability, in particular on Sundays which is contractually outside of the working week.

In Scotland, links from Glasgow to Oban and Mallaig, and from Inverness to Kyle of Lochalsh and Wick are subject to speed restrictions because of high winds. Some rail replacement buses will run.

Douglas Cairns, from Transport Scotland, said road, rail, air and ferry services are “all likely to be affected by the conditions” with possible longer journey times, cancellations and restrictions on bridges.

The Isle of Man Steam Packet Company said its 7.45pm Saturday ferry service from Douglas, Isle of Man to Heysham, Lancashire was cancelled due to the “forecast adverse weather”, along with its 2.15am Sunday service from Heysham to Douglas.

CalMac, which operates ferries to the west coast of Scotland, said possible disruptions and cancellations could affect each of its planned services for Saturday.

The RAC has urged Christmas getaway travellers to “be patient” on the roads and highlighted the M25, M4 and M5 as “crunch points” for delays.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, RAC senior policy officer Rod Dennis said: “Anyone travelling now, I’m looking at the maps, you’ve got a lot of the road largely to yourself.

“But we are expecting things to build up through the course of the morning … If you’re packing up now, this is a good time to travel. There’s a core of about 11 o’clock this morning and between about four and six this afternoon, that’s the core time where we expect the traffic to be heavier.”

When asked if there are particular crunch points of delays the RAC is worried about, Mr Dennis said: “Yeah, I wouldn’t say worried about. I think this is the thing people are going to be well used to, where they’re not able to tear all the cones out and open all the lanes.

“Obviously there’s stretches of the northern part of the M25, part of the M4, the M5, a lot of routes people use for the sorts of journeys they’re going to make ahead of Christmas where they just can’t open all the lanes back up again. So, there’s those to bear in mind.

“What we’re saying to people is just be patient. These are journeys that matter to us this time of year. Just don’t expect to get there the minute your sat-nav says it will. Allow yourself a bit of time to make it easy and get there safely.”

Met Office deputy chief meteorologist Rebekah Hicks said: “We’ll start to see high pressure to the south of the UK bringing in more settled and much milder conditions from Christmas Eve.

“Christmas Day itself will be cloudy for most, although some eastern areas of the UK, most likely eastern Scotland, may see some clear or sunny spells.

“We could see some drizzle across hills in the west, and some more persistent rain is possible for north-west Scotland, but overall it will be a fairly cloudy, nondescript day.

“Conditions on Christmas Day and Boxing Day look to be exceptionally mild for the time of year, especially in the north.

“East and north-east Scotland, for example, could see overnight temperatures that are 10C above average on Christmas morning.”