COMMUTERS are being urged to plan their journeys ahead of Wednesday night as roads in and out of Manchester city centre are expected to be much busier than usual.

Authorities say Manchester United's clash with Arsenal at Old Trafford coupled with the ongoing improvement work taking place on the Manchester and Salford Inner Relief Route and many more people now visiting the Christmas Markets, could mean journeys take longer during the evening peak.

Ryan Carter, events and planning lead at TfGM, said: “We have thousands of park and ride spaces available across Greater Manchester, including Sale Water Park, Ladywell and Ashton, all of which help people to avoid getting caught up in traffic on the roads.

“We’d also encourage fans travelling to Old Trafford to also consider using one of our new pop-up sites at the AJ Bell Stadium and Event City as they offer free and direct bus services to the ground.

With no trains operating between Manchester and London after 9.15pm, supporter coaches will be used bring fans up, however, - with over 2,500 away tickets sold - more are expected to travel by car.