The great Christmas getaway begins - and immediately the roads are snarled as 20 MILLION cars are expected to take to the roads 

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The great Christmas getaway is under way, with 20 million cars expected on the roads today as people travel home for the festive period.  

This evening is expected to be the busiest time of the Christmas period with the combination of the usual Friday peak, the start of the school holidays and early break-ups for some workers being blamed.

There have been several accidents on motorways across the country this evening, which has led to severe delays and a heavy build up of traffic.

Motorists on the M25 at Dartford in Kent sit in traffic as motorists gear up for what is set to be the busiest day on the roads during Christmas

There are currently severe delays on the M62 in West Yorkshire and two lanes are closed because of a crash involving three vehicles.

Elsewhere, there is one lane closed on the M6 in Lancashire between Carnforth and Lancaster due to an accident involving a lorry.

There are delays on the M60 in Manchester at Ashton Under Lyne because of an accident and there is disruption and slow traffic at Bishops Stortford because of barrier repairs on the road.

On the M42 in Worcestershire, one lane is closed at Portway due to a broken down lorry.  

There are also delays on the M6 West Midlands due to an earlier accident, but all lanes have now re-opened.

There is heavy congestion on the M20 in Kent and queuing traffic on the slip road at the Channel Tunnel. The M4 in Berkshire is grid-locked because of earlier broken down vehicle and there is heavy traffic on the M1 between Daventry and Dunchurch, in Warwickshire. 

Motorists were already caught up in tailbacks this morning, as several families made attempts to beat the rush, and police reported a steady build-up of traffic across the country. 

There were several crashes across the country this morning including three in the space of half an hour in Brighton, East Sussex, and in one incident, six cars were involved in a pile-up at a busy junction of the A23, blocking two lanes. In another incident, a car span off the road.

No one was hurt in those incidents but police said they 'caused widespread traffic congestion' north of Brighton, on the day where the most cars are expected to take to the roads.  

On one of the busiest days for travel in the year, motorists crawl out of Bradford, in West Yorkshire, this evening 

This evening is expected to be the busiest time of the Christmas period - pictured, cars make their way home in the lashing rain in Bradford

Police forces across the country reported a steady build-up of traffic this morning, which is believed to peak after 4pm today

Liverpool Street Station in London is busy even at lunch time today as passengers start to make their commutes to loved ones by train

Earlier today, in Surrey, a main road through Epsom was blocked, causing chaos in the area, after a lorry slammed into a railway bridge. The Maxi haulage lorry was 'crumpled by the encounter' said Surrey Police roads unit.

While the busy B3068 Blandford Road in Poole, Dorset, remains closed in both directions between the Rigler Road junction and the Ivor Road junction, because of a gas leak. Diversion are in operation via the Twin Sails Bridge.

The main A6 through Northamptonshire is blocked at the Obelisk Road junction in Finedon after a crash involving at least two vehicles.

Meanwhile, approach roads to Heathrow and other main airports and cross-Channel terminals were congested as travellers battled to board planes and ferries. 

Delays on the rail network also led to hold-ups for passengers attempting to get to two other major London airports.  

For Gatwick-bound travellers, there were problems for the third day running due to, initially, signalling problems at Burgess Hill in West Sussex and then staff shortages on the Thameslink and Great Northern routes.

Those travelling towards Stansted were delayed by a signal problem at the Essex airport's rail station around lunchtime.

There were also other delays on the network during rush-hour, causing chaos for thousands of passengers today. 

Passengers join the queues at Terminal 5 of Heathrow Airport in London as they prepare to get away for the Christmas holidays

AS many as four million Britons are expected to head overseas over the festive period, which is slightly more than last year

Top winter sun destinations include the Canary Islands, Tunisia and Morocco, while the leading long-haul destinations are Dubai, Mexico, Cuba and Egypt

Approach roads to Heathrow and other main airports and cross-Channel terminals were congested today as travellers battled to board planes

South West Trains' passengers were held up by a broken-down train at Wimbledon in south-west London, while a signalling problem near Canley in the West Midlands led to delays to services run by the CrossCountry, London Midland and Virgin Trains companies.

In Kent and East Sussex, signalling problems between Ashford International and Rye caused hold-ups and in northern England, safety checks at Crossflatts in North Yorkshire led to delays to trains between Keighley and Shipley.

On the England/Wales border, flooding meant trains had to be replaced by buses between Shrewsbury and Machynlleth, with the disruption expected to last until at least 8pm.

In Devon there were delays of up to an hour between Plymouth and Exeter St Davids after a person was hit by a train at Totnes.

Travellers on Thameslink and Great Northern routes were warned to expect short-notice cancellations, delays and alterations to services owing to the staff shortages.

Chief executive of Govia Thameslink Railway, Charles Horton, apologised to passenger saying: 'Regrettably, despite our best efforts, some services have been cancelled because we have not had enough drivers for all our rail services, especially given the essential training we are undertaking at the moment to deliver Thameslink Programme works.

'We inherited this issue when we took over the franchise in September and we are determined to address it. Thank you for your patience and please accept our apologies. We are determined to make things better.'

Tweeting passengers appeared less than impressed. Aran Beedham said the Thameslink situation was 'now descending into a farce' while a tweet under the title Trainslate spoke of 'the ridiculous driver-shortage excuse'.

Candy Cane Staiano tweeted: 'Thameslink (formerly run by equally rubbish First Capital Connect) your train service has been shocking this week! Hang your head in shame.' 

This Maxi lorry got stuck after it slammed into a railway bridge in Epsom, Surrey, this morning. Police say it was 'crumpled by the encounter'

Traffic flows on the M4 near Datchet earlier today. By this evening it is expected to be congested as motorists make their Christmas journeys

Meanwhile, the Environment Agency has warned motorists to stay out of flood water as they head off after revealing last Christmas Eve was the busiest day in the last five years for flood rescues.

More than 640 vehicles were rescued from flood water on Christmas Eve last year by the AA, while the Environment Agency issued 450 flood warnings and alerts on the same day. 

The RAC, which predicts more than 12 million cars will take to the roads between Christmas Eve and Boxing Day, is urging drivers to prepare well for journeys. 

RAC national operations manager Matt Dallaway said: 'December has seen the UK's weather take on a distinctly unsettled and for some of us wintry flavour, and the signs are that this could continue through the week when many of us will be taking to the roads.

'So the message is for drivers to plan for their journeys ahead of time, and make sure their vehicles are properly winter-proof.'  

As many as four million Britons are expected to head overseas for the festive period, which is slightly more than last year. 

Top winter sun destinations for Britons included the Canary Islands, Tunisia and Morocco, while leading long-haul destinations included Dubai, Mexico, Cuba and Egypt. 

Pinch points: The ten worst spots on the roads, according to the report today by traffic specialists INRIX

But those staying at home might have to contend with disruption to train journeys over the holiday period as a £200million rail engineering programme gets under way.

Among routes being disrupted is the West Coast line where major work is going on at Watford, Hertfordshire and between Stafford and Crewe, Cheshire.

There is also work at Reading, Berkshire, while tomorrow will see the start of a 16-day part-closure of London Bridge station for work involving the £6.5billion Thameslink programme.

Network Rail and industry body the Rail Delivery Group have stressed the need for the work to go on during a time when few commuters travel.

But customer watchdog Passenger Focus said: 'For passengers wanting to travel over the Christmas period, engineering works can be a major inconvenience, especially if it means having to use rail replacement bus services.'