National Highways employees, who operate and maintain roads in England, will take part in a series of staggered strikes from 16 December to 7 January, the PCS union said.

"We know our members' action could inconvenience travellers who plan to visit their relatives over the festive period, but our members have been placed in this situation by a government that won't listen to its own workforce," said the PCS union's general secretary Mark Serwotka.

"With the serious cost of living crisis, they deserve to be paid properly for the important work they do, keeping our roads running safe and free."

Traffic officers help keep the roads moving and users safe through planning and delivering schemes as well as providing key safety services such as rolling road blocks, smart motorways and lane closures.

The walkouts, which risk bringing the road network to a standstill, will coincide with planned strikes by RMT members on the railways.

Here are the dates each area will be affected by the road strikes:

• 16 and 17 December - North West, Yorkshire, and North East
• 22, 23, 24 and 24 December - London and South East
• 30 and 31 December - West Midlands and South West
• 3 and 4 January - All areas
• 6 and 7 January - East Midlands and eastern England

The rail strikes are planned on 11, 12, 13, 14, 16, 17 December and 3, 4, 6 and 7 January.

Ground handlers at Heathrow have also said they will strike before Christmas in a dispute over pay.

In all, 350 workers employed by Menzies will walk out from 4am on 16 December for 72 hours.

The airport has urged its partners affected by the strikes to "continue with their contingency planning" and has said it will support them to "minimise the impact on passengers".

Hundreds of thousands of workers across many sectors of the economy, including nurses, postal staff and ambulance employees, have announced strike action during the festive period.

Ministers have 'a lot on their plate'

General secretary of the RMT union Mick Lynch met government ministers earlier on Friday for discussions on averting strike action in December, and told Sky News "talks are continuing over the weekend".

"We'll see where we go from there," he said.

He added that the government is taking the strikes "seriously" but there is a "lot going on in society at the minute".

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"They [ministers] have a got a lot on their plate," he said.

Disruption to postal services ahead of Christmas is likely to be an issue for some as well, with Royal Mail asking customers to post their cards and gifts earlier than usual due to the ongoing strike action by its workers.

Eurostar security staff are also due to strike on 16, 18, 22 and 23 December.

Other departments, including the Home Office, are expected to announce industrial action over the course of the next few weeks.