Alun Kinsella with Zoe, 2, at Dublin Airport after returning from the US

A record 1.9 million Britons are set to travel abroad over the holidays.

More than 18 million cars, out of a UK total of 26 million, will be driven at some point over the same period.

Snow falls and plummeting temperatures could mean a white Christmas for much of the country with motorists being urged to prepare for bad weather.

Thousands of staff left workplaces soon after lunchtime on Thursday, but many had to contend with high winds and numerous accidents.

Bad start

The Christmas getaway got off to a bad start on Wednesday when the main A74 road connecting England and Scotland was blocked by a fatal crash.

The accident led to traffic chaos with hundreds of drivers stuck in their cars for up to 13 hours.

And on Thursday there were accidents on several major routes, including the M25 north of London, between junctions 25 and 26, the M4 near Swindon in Wiltshire, and the M42 near Worcester.

AA road operations director Steve Dewey said: "Many people will take the day off, or will finish work early and head off to see friends and relatives."

With many of Britain's roads close to capacity... the extra burden inevitably results in delays AA Road begins to reopen after crash

"Also, the combination of January sales starting early, and last-minute Christmas shoppers, will mean that roads into town centres and large shopping centres will be badly affected as well."

The "extra burden" of Christmas traffic on Britain's "close to capacity roads" would inevitably result in delays, he added.

Snow showers will start to fall from late on Christmas Eve until the end of Boxing Day.

The BBC weather website said anywhere could get some snow but the most likely areas on Christmas Day are north and west Scotland, Northern Ireland, the northwest of England, Wales and the Midlands.

On Boxing Day, the showers transfer to eastern England.

The Highways Agency, whose gritting fleet was on stand-by, said if the weather does become severe motorists should avoid driving "unless you have to".

Last-minute shoppers

It said driving conditions were expected to be worst on high ground, including the M6, M62, A66 and A69.

Meanwhile, retailers will be prepared for a last minute surge in business as shoppers grab final presents.

Barclays has predicted that Thursday and Friday would be the busiest Christmas shopping days, with millions spent on credit and debit cards.

The bank said that on December 22 and 23 last year shoppers spent about �400m on their credit and debit cards.

"Retailers should brace themselves for the final Christmas rush as last minute shoppers make that final dash to the shops," said Mike Rogers, Managing Director of Barclays Personal Customers.

"Our data shows that last year the biggest last minute spending took place in supermarkets, department stores and petrol stations as people made sure they were stocked up and ready to spend the Christmas holidays with their loved ones."