Surely this can’t be as bad as that memorable Easter weekend when I caught the train from Euston a couple of decades ago, on a rainy Maundy Thursday about 7pm… only to arrive home in Liverpool at 6am the following morning. It was a journey that involved leaves on the line, numerous train breakdowns, disgruntled Scousers commandeering the tannoy to share their forthright views on Sir Richard Branson’s management of a railway system – and cold hours shivering at Crewe station before piling onto a bus.

Having looked at the traffic predictions for this Easter break, however, I’m not so sure. With huge shortages of airline staff and many flight cancellations, holidaying out of the country has clearly been a risk a lot of us decided not to take. But those of us wanting to make the most of the sunny weekend, it looks like that this will now only be enjoyed at best in the back garden or failing that, the scenic panorama of an M4 tailback – unless, of course, you’re willing to get up at 3am and drive in the dark. And personally, I always find starting a holiday with significant sleep deprivation, coupled with being cooped up in a badly packed car and half-melted Easter eggs, improves family relationships no end.

Of course, given the much larger problems that are going on in the world, complaining about a disrupted Easter break may seem petty. But for many of us, this has been a long wait. Two years ago, we were in lockdown and could do nothing. Last year, we had just been allowed to meet people outdoors – although still with the rule of six in place. So surely this year was the chance we could finally enjoy a holiday with family with no restrictions at all?

The current Covid situation has obliged. Our transport system has not, despite it being obvious that many would want to go away for the first Easter in two years. Instead, we are now in a frankly farcical situation where Stansted airport is advising people to check in their luggage the day before they fly, in order to ensure they can leave on time. My brother, a Liverpool fan, is now looking at a circuitous trip via Sheffield to get to Wembley for the FA Cup semi-final, thanks to West Coast mainline repairs, among the 530 engineering projects being carried out by Network Rail this weekend.

Meanwhile, P&O Ferries, having suspended its Dover-Calais route this weekend at the last minute, seems to think it’s no problem to transfer its unlucky customers onto a Hull-Rotterdam one instead – an embarkation port that’s a mere 260 miles away. But while P&O has promised to pay any extra mileage that its customers incur, I wonder if anyone among these great shipping minds may have paused to consider the fact that this solution may be complicated even further now the AA is advising people to travel on Saturday, rather than Good Friday, because of the gridlock predicted on the roads today.

Honestly, it would make you laugh. That is, if you were not the owner of a silver Skoda who had already smugly made arrangements to travel to East Anglia on Saturday precisely to avoid any Good Friday gridlock, and now faces the increased chance of a snarl-up. And what no one has dared mention – doesn’t even want to think of – is the fact that many state schools return to school on Tuesday, meaning the chaos on Monday is likely to make today look positively serene.

So a happy and peaceful Easter, everyone – however far you get.

Judith Woods is away