Skip to main contentSkip to navigationSkip to navigation
Snow in Yorkshire Dales
A cyclist braves the snow near Reeth in the Yorkshire Dales. Photograph: John Giles/PA
A cyclist braves the snow near Reeth in the Yorkshire Dales. Photograph: John Giles/PA

Britain set for coldest March since 1962

This article is more than 11 years old
Met Office says average temperature has been 2.5C this month – three degrees below long-term average

This weekend's great Easter getaway will be accompanied by some of the coldest March weather in decades, with temperatures in the UK set to drop to their lowest levels since 1962.

Met Office figures show that from 1 March to 26 March the UK mean temperature was 2.5C (36.5F) – three degrees below the long-term average.

This makes it the joint fourth coldest in the UK, in records going back to 1910. The coldest March in the UK was in 1962, at 1.9C (35.4F).

There was better news though for anyone heading to France by boat as French port control officers called off a 24-hour strike that would have severely disrupted cross-Channel ferry services.

P&O Ferries had warned its passengers to expect long delays on Thursday and on Good Friday, and there were fears of traffic build-ups on routes to the port of Dover in Kent.

But at 2am on Thursday, the stoppage – which would have hit ports such as Calais, Dieppe and Cherbourg – was called off following successful late-night talks.

Those now able to travel freely by cross-Channel ferry will be among around 1.7 million Britons escaping the continuing cold to holiday abroad this Easter.

From Thursday until Tuesday, a total of 600,000 people are expected to leave from Heathrow airport, 214,000 from Gatwick, 110,000 from Manchester, 110,000 from Stansted and 55,000 from Luton. Scottish airports, meanwhile, will see more than 100,000 departures.

Those staying at home can expect temperatures to pick up slightly over the holiday period but they will be still be far below average for the time of year.

People travelling by rail over Easter will have to contend with a number of engineering works, including major work at Reading in Berkshire and work on the west coast main line in the West Midlands.

On the roads, the Highways Agency has suspended roadworks for the Easter period on a number of England's motorways and major A roads.

But for safety reasons, works remain in place on some busy routes, including the M1 near Milton Keynes in Buckinghamshire.

The AA estimates that as many as 17 million cars will take to the roads over the holiday period, with the busiest periods expected to be Thursday afternoon and Good Friday morning.

But the organisation added that the roads may not be as busy as usual as the cold weather was likely to make this more of a "stay-at-home Easter".

The Met Office said this March was likely to be the fourth coldest on record for England, the joint third coldest for Wales, the joint eighth coldest for Scotland and sixth coldest for Northern Ireland.

More on this story

More on this story

  • Spring: where has it gone?

  • March set to be coldest in UK since 1962

  • Easter getaway transport guide – road, rail, air travel and more

  • Cross-Channel ferry strike called off hours before Easter getaway

  • Cold weather to continue for a month, say forecasters

  • Millions of Britons flee abroad in search of Easter sunshine

  • Global warming predictions prove accurate

Most viewed

Most viewed