At least two of the Brexit blockades planned for the South West of England this afternoon are going ahead, insist the organisers.
The M5 is set to be affected, but much further south from Gloucestershire around Exeter. The A30 from Devon into Cornwall is also set to be the scene of a rolling roadblock, but it's not clear if another protest, heading from Avonmouth to Dursley on the M5 and then onto the M4 , is happening or not.
Our sister title Devon Live is reporting that a go-slow will take place on the M5 from 5.30pm today, Friday March 22 beginning and ending at Exeter Services with those taking part aiming to slow traffic to 40mph on a loop down to junction 27 and back.
And Cornwall Live reports that the A30 will be slowed down to as little as 20mph this afternoon from Plusha to Truro.
It comes as an estimate has been placed on the cost of the protests in South West, if all of those planned do go ahead.
The planned action has been branded as 'hopelessly irresponsible' by Tim Jones, chairman of the South West Business Council.
Mr Jones said: "Our usual estimate for disruption on this vital route is £1million an hour, but given the timing on what is the most crucial time of the week for deliveries and employee movements, I think you can easily add 25 per cent to that.
"It is hopelessly irresponsible and flies in the face of how the South West economy supports itself. Small businesses cannot withstand this and this is literally taking cash away from people."
Similar protests have been organised by anti-EU group Brexit Direct Action across the country.
Brexit Direct Action is a group "against the government's Withdrawal Agreement which is not Brexit" and demands a "clean Brexit from the EU".
There are reports that businesses in and around Exeter have told staff to leave early to avoid becoming caught up in the disruption.
Mr Jones said: "People are saying to me that informally, they will let staff leave early to avoid disruption to them and their businesses.
"This means that we are not just talking about disruption on the roads but businesses having to bear the brunt of lost input as well. It's wholly irresponsible."
