Motorists are being warned to expect tailbacks later as millions of Britons set out on breaks or day trips over the bank holiday weekend.
The RAC motoring body says the busiest time is predicted to be between 11:00 and 16:00 BST, when up to 10 million vehicles are likely to be on the roads.
Warm weather, rail maintenance and a boom in "staycations" due to a fall in the value of sterling are contributing to a rise in traffic, it says.
But millions are also heading overseas.
Travel organisation Abta estimates two million Britons will be flying abroad between Friday and Monday.
It says city breaks are a popular choice, and many families are travelling to Mediterranean beach resorts, with Spain the top destination. Orlando, New York and Las Vegas are among the leading long-haul destinations.
Abta says more than 440,000 people are expected to depart from Heathrow over the weekend; while 311,000 passengers are leaving from Gatwick; 150,000 from Stansted; more than 103,000 from Manchester; 55,000 from Bristol and 47,000 from East Midlands.
Ports and the Channel Tunnel are expected to be busy, it adds.
'Mad scramble'
Monday is a day off in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, but a working day in Scotland, which had its summer bank holiday at the beginning of the month.
According to a study of 1,579 motorists for the RAC by Ragdoll Research, 20.7m vehicles could be using UK roads between Thursday and Monday, compared with 10.1m in 2015.
The RAC says other busy times on the roads over the bank holiday weekend are expected to be between 11:00 and 16:00 on Sunday and 16:00 and 18:00 on Monday.
Transport information supplier Inrix is predicting that congestion hotspots will include the M25 between J9 Leatherhead and J21 Winch Hill Wood; the M5 southbound from J14 Thornbury and J22 Highbridge; the M25 between J4 Orpington and Dartford Tunnel; the M27/A31 between Southampton and Ringwood, and the M4 westbound from London to the West Country.
National Express says it will be busiest weekend of the year for its services, with hundreds of thousands of passengers booked on coaches.
Music festivals this weekend include Reading and Leeds, Creamfields in Cheshire, and CarFest South in Hampshire.
The AA's Max Holdstock said traffic will build up around large events and urged people to carry extra water in their vehicles because of the warm weather.
"August Bank Holiday weekend is always a bit of a mad scramble on the roads," he said.
"Routes to the South West and the coast are usually among the busiest, particularly with hot weather forecast; and there will be localised congestion around events, especially at finish time."
Highways England said almost 98% of England's motorway and major A roads would be clear of roadworks over the weekend.
But Network Rail's route managing director Martin Frobisher said its larger upgrades were carried out over bank holidays because there were fewer passengers travelling.
Almost 1,000 engineering projects are being taking place including a signalling upgrade in the Bristol area, affecting Great Western passengers; track replacement between Milton Keynes and Rugby, and a project to electrify the railway through Chorley.
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