August Bank Holiday 2023: best and worst times to travel
There’s nothing worse than being excited about a bank holiday break and then being stuck in traffic[1], forced to wait hours bumper to bumper on the motorway to get to your destination.
But what if there was a way to know when to travel so you could avoid all the traffic this Bank Holiday weekend?
Thanks to the RAC and transport analysis company Inrix, there is.
🚗 Over 14 million drivers are gearing up for leisure trips this bank holiday weekend
🛣️ Saturday is set to be the busiest ‘getaway’ day on the roads with 3.1 million trips
🌆 4.2 million additional trips are expected by drivers who are yet to finalise their travel day pic.twitter.com/ZgBMio3jwK[2]
— The RAC (@TheRAC_UK) August 22, 2023[3]
Best and worst times to travel this Bank Holiday weekend
A survey commissioned by the RAC suggested that around 14.4 million leisure trips by car are planned for between Friday and Monday.
Saturday (August 26) is set to be the busiest on the roads[4] this weekend with more than three million leisure trips by car estimated.
Pressure on the roads will be increased further on Saturday when train services will be disrupted due strikes and works being carried out.
Friday will be the next busiest with over 2.8m cars set to hit the road.
Meanwwhile, the M1, M4, M5 and M25 are set to be some of the busiest roads this Bank Holiday weekend.
According to RAC’s research based on the 2022 August Bank Holiday[5], these are the best and worst times to travel this weekend:
Best times to travel this Bank Holiday weekend
- Friday, August 25 – Before 10am
- Saturday, August 26 – After 3pm
- Sunday, August 27 – Before 10am
- Monday, August 28 – Before 10am
Worst times to travel this Bank Holiday weekend
- Friday, August 25 – 10am to 7pm
- Saturday, August 26 – 10am to 3pm
- Sunday, August 27 – 10am to 3pm
- Monday, August 28 – 10am to 4pm
Major roads to watch for delays
- Friday, August 25 – M1 (North J12 to J16), M25 (anticlockwise J4 to J1) and M4 (East J29 to J24)
- Saturday, August 26 – M5 (South J15 to J23)
- Sunday, August 27 – M1 (South J16 to J6)
- Monday, August 28 – M5 (North J25 to J15)
National Highways said it will lift nearly 1,000 miles of roadworks ahead of the bank holiday weekend to ease journeys.
See the best and worst times to travel this Bank Holiday weekend. (Image: The RAC)
RAC spokesperson, Simon Williams said: “With fuel prices much lower than last summer’s record highs, it’s clear from our research that many more drivers are planning to make the most of what the UK has to offer over the last bank holiday[6] of the summer.
“And if the weather is kind, even more people may decide to take trips, swelling numbers on the road further still and possibly adding to the inevitable delays.
“Those looking to have uninterrupted journeys should aim to travel very early to beat the jams[7], or if that’s not possible, much later in the day if they’re planning to be travelling on Friday.
“With breakdown numbers already well exceeding previous years, we’re urging drivers to do all they can to avoid finding themselves broken down at the side of the road by carrying out a few essential vehicle checks before setting off.”
Inrix analyst Bob Pishue added: “We expect this bank holiday weekend[8] to be very busy on major roads, with Friday and Saturday seeing the longest delays compared to normal.
“While the most significant delays over the three days are going to be on the M25 and M1, routes to the West will inevitably be badly affected too.”
Other travel disruptions this Bank Holiday weekend
Traffic on the roads could also increase due to disruptions to train services this Bank Holiday weekend.
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There will be an RMT strike in place on Saturday (August 26) causing disruptions to services across the UK.
Train services will also be affected by Network Rail who are carrying out around 500 projects across Britain’s railways over the long weekend.
The busiest station affected is London Euston, where services will be limited from 8pm on Saturday (August 26) until Tuesday (August 29) due to track renewals and signalling upgrades.
No trains will serve London Charing Cross or Waterloo East on Saturday or Sunday, while buses and coaches will replace trains on the East Coast Main Line between Grantham, Royston and Potters Bar/Hertford North from late Saturday until the early hours of Monday.
References
- ^ traffic (www.penarthtimes.co.uk)
- ^ pic.twitter.com/ZgBMio3jwK (t.co)
- ^ August 22, 2023 (twitter.com)
- ^ busiest on the roads (www.bournemouthecho.co.uk)
- ^ Bank Holiday (www.bournemouthecho.co.uk)
- ^ bank holiday (www.bournemouthecho.co.uk)
- ^ beat the jams (www.bournemouthecho.co.uk)
- ^ bank holiday weekend (www.bournemouthecho.co.uk)