Some sunshine between showers during Easter weekend; Busy roads expected

Unfortunately, the sunny weather of the first half of this week did not make it to Easter weekend. Clouds and rain are on the forecast for most of Thursday and Friday, though there may be some sun and dry periods on Saturday and Sunday. Many people going away for the long weekend, combined with the rainy weather, will likely cause a very difficult evening rush hour today, Rijkswatersaat warned.

“Maundy Thursday and Good Friday will be cloudy with rain on Thursday and a few showers on Friday,” Weeronline reported. Maximums will climb to around 10 degrees on both days. And there is a chance of the sun breaking through the cloud cover on Friday afternoon.

Saturday will have periods of sunshine and generally dry weather, except for an occasional shower here and there. There may also be showers on Easter Sunday and Monday. “Yet it is the dry moments that determine the weather. There is a mix of cloud fields and sun, making it great weather to hunt for Easter eggs outside,” Weeronline said. Maximums on all three days will range between 12 and 15 degrees, north to south.

Public works department Rijkswaterstaat expects lots of traffic jams on Thursday evening and more traffic than usual throughout the weekend. On top of people hitting the road to go away for the long weekend, “Thursday is already the busiest evening rush hour of the week, and it looks like the evening rush hour will be rainy,” Rijkswaterstaat said.

Road users can also expect traffic jams over the weekend. “We expect extra crowds, particularly on Easter Monday,” Rijkswaterstaat said. “Recreational areas, like forests, lakes, and beaches, are likely to attract more visitors. But it can also be busier on the national roads around theme parks and furniture boulevards.”

According to Weeronline, the weather on Easter weekend varies greatly from year to year, not only because Easter dates vary but also because spring weather is always erratic. The difference between the warmest and coldest Easters, the average maximum over both days, is massive. The warmest measured almost 25 degrees in De Bilt in 2011, and the coldest at 4.2 degrees in 1964.