The 13m motorists set to drive will endure far colder weather than encountered at Easter

Travel organisations have warned of a “motoring mayday” over the bank holiday weekend if older car batteries fail as car drivers decide to take their first big trip of the year.

The three-day period will bring much colder temperatures than were experienced two weeks ago – one of the hottest Easters on record. Temperatures may fall as low as -2C in northern Scotland, after reaching a 70-year-high of 25.5C in Hampshire on Easter Saturday.

The dip will bring sharp night frosts and wintry winds, with heavy showers and even a risk of hail in the Midlands and the south-east. Officials have advised drivers that travel disruption will persist throughout the break.

The RAC anticipates that more than 13 million motorists will hit the roads over the weekend, the highest number since 2016. While the bulk of trips will be made on Friday, and congestion will peak between 4pm and 7pm, the traffic will continue right through until Monday evening.

RAC breakdown spokesman Rod Dennis said: “There is a risk that drivers will suffer their own motoring mayday if they are not careful, since the colder nights we’re about to experience could be enough to cause some older car batteries to finally give up the ghost – seriously disrupting plans for a getaway.

“The advice is again to try to use the roads when they are quieter, which primarily means avoiding Friday afternoon and evening if possible, and setting off earlier on Saturday, especially if travelling any great distance.”

Virgin Trains has urged passengers to “avoid travelling on these dates unless you absolutely have to”. Britain’s fifth busiest station, London Euston, will remain closed as further works are carried out in preparation for HS2, while a train replacement service is in place between Bristol Parkway and Newport, and between Shenfield and Southend Victoria in Essex.

There will be no trains out of London Fenchurch Street between Saturday and Monday, with amended services to and from London St Pancras and out of Glasgow Central.

Met Office chief meteorologist Andy Page said on Friday: “After cold, frosty starts and cool days for many across the bank holiday weekend, daytime temperatures will gradually recover early next week.

“However, they will not come near the high values we saw over the Easter weekend.”