Comment: One traffic jam, hundreds of ruined holidays – 16 Aug 2007

Sitting on the M25 last Friday for seven hours, due to an accident that closed one stretch of the motorway, gave me plenty of time to listen to a local radio station.

It had scrapped its usual programmes that day to focus all its attention on the motorway standstill. People were encouraged to phone in with their tales of woe and share stories of what they were missing as a result.

Caller after caller reported that they were on their way to either Gatwick or Heathrow and had missed their flights. ABTA was invited to comment and advised passengers to continue making their way to the airport, regardless of whether or not they had missed their flight.

That evening's TV news depicted tearful families who had missed the only flight to their destination that week, meaning their holiday plans were dashed.

The average amount of time drivers were caught in the jam was five hours. I doubt many – if any – allowed quite that much time ahead of their flight. But this situation does emphasise the importance of leaving plenty of time to reach the airport as well as check in and clear security.

Those caught out on Friday would have been best served if they had booked their flight and/or holiday through a travel agent or tour operator. One call to their agent would have saved them the additional anguish of trying to get through to the airline or airport they were using.

A travel agent cannot delay a flight's departure, of course, but they can inform the airline and, if necessary, make alternative arrangements. This level of support would have been invaluable to all those who missed flights last week.