UK motorists warned of weekend gridlock and parking‑text fraud

The RAC estimates that about 14.1 million drivers will travel on UK roads this weekend, with Saturday expected to be the busiest day at 3.8 million journeys. Experts say most congestion will be caused by “phantom traffic jams” that spread backwards through traffic, and that changing lanes rarely improves travel time. Professor Randa Herzallah of the University of Warwick advises drivers to avoid frequent lane changes, as each disturbance can amplify traffic waves and increase overall delay.

At the same time, UK motorists are being targeted by a resurgence of parking‑text scams. Fraudsters send official‑looking messages claiming an unpaid parking charge and direct recipients to a fake website where vehicle registration and card details are harvested. A common trick is the instruction to reply “Y” and reopen the message to bypass phone security. Police and consumer groups warn that legitimate parking operators never request passwords or urgent payment via text, urging drivers to verify any charge through official apps or websites.