A project chief at National Highways has advised motorists to “decorate the bathroom” to avoid potential road chaos as a stretch of the M25 is closed for a full weekend for the first time.
The unprecedented closure is to allow a bridge to be demolished and for lanes to be extended
A series of diversions will be set up but large tailbacks are expected.
Project leader at National Highways Jonathan Wade told the Independent’s travel podcast: “Please, if you can either avoid travelling completely, find something to do at home – decorate the bathroom or something, or play in the garden.
“If you must go, travel by train, walk, use a bicycle. I don't mind really what you do.
“Avoid driving anywhere around those diversionary routes around Painshill, Byfleet, West Byfleet on the eastern side of Woking. It will be in your interests.”
The £317 million project is scheduled to be completed in the summer of 2025. The diversions over the weekend are expected to add at least an hour to journeys.
The detours are around northern Surrey, via Cobham, Byfleet, West Byfleet and Sheerwater before drivers are able to rejoin the motorway at Chertsey.
South Western Railway services, which run in the area, are operating normally over the coming weekend except for a line closure between Hampton Court and Surbiton.
Meanwhile drivers are being urged to ignore satnavs and only follow official diversion routes to prevent causing gridlock.
Mr Wade said: “How many people are going to take the initiative and try and use satnavs?
"There's probably a greater risk of congestion by people just doing their own thing and thinking they can perhaps beat the signs and find a shorter or quicker route.
"That will cause further congestion on some of the key junctions so please avoid doing that if at all possible."
The closure will be the first scheduled daytime all-lanes shutdown on the M25 since it opened in 1986.
The M25 normally carries between 4,000 and 6,000 vehicles in each direction per hour from 10am until 9pm at weekends between junctions 9 and 11.
Steve Gooding, director of motoring research charity the RAC Foundation, told the PA news agency: "We must hope National Highways has overstated its dire predictions of sat navs adding to the traffic chaos by taking drivers off the official diversion route, because the temptation to try to skip the queues will be intense, and the impact on actual journey times uncertain.
"Whilst the modelling suggests around an hour might be added to people's travel time, that will feel optimistic to anyone used to the frustrations of driving round the M25 on days even without major construction works under way."
Councillors whose wards are on the diversion route expressed concerns about what will happen.
Malcolm Cressey, of Runnymede Borough Council, said: "I think it's going to be a difficult period but we have to sort out those bridges.
"I think it's going to be very disruptive.
"I would certainly urge anybody to try and avoid the area.
"It could end up with all sorts of gridlock in our area."
Tahir Aziz, of Woking Borough Council, said: "We've never experienced something like this before.
"It will have a significant impact in this area.
"It will cause huge disruption and delays, and a lot of traffic jams."
