Drivers are being warned of congestion hotspots on key routes in the UK over the coming bank holiday getaway.

Drivers will see longer-than-normal journey times on some key routes this coming bank holiday

More than 14 million drivers are set to make leisure trips this bank holiday weekend – nearly two million more than last year, data from the RAC suggests.

Saturday is expected to be the busiest ‘getaway’ day of the weekend on the roads, with the research of more than 2,000 UK drivers showing as many as 3.1 million separate trips are due to be taken. Friday is expected to be the next busiest with 2.8 million trips planned, followed by Sunday with 2.3 million, while the bank holiday Monday is predicted to see 1.9 million.

On top of these estimates are another 4.2 million trips, which will be made at some point over the course of the three-day weekend by drivers who have yet decide which day to travel on.

While the overall number of getaway trips due to be made over the August bank holiday weekend is 1.8 million more than last year when fuel prices were at an all-time high, they are not as high as previous years when petrol and diesel were much cheaper.

The most popular destinations for the bank holiday weekend are Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, followed by the West Country (Cornwall, Devon, Dorset and Somerset), then Wales and Scotland jointly.

Transport experts at Inrix are warning of longer-than-normal journeys on some key routes on Friday around 1pm with delays of 55 minutes on M1 North J12 to J16, 34 minutes on M25 anticlockwise J4 to J1, and 24 minutes on M4 East J29 to J24.

On Saturday the worst delay will be 37 minutes on M5 South J15 to J23 around midday as drivers flood to the South West and on Sunday it will be 34 minutes on M1 South J16 to J6 for those travelling around 4.30pm. On bank holiday Monday around 2pm drivers on M5 North J25 to J15 can expect their journeys to take 30 minutes longer.

Drivers are advised to avoid using major roads between 10am and 7pm on Friday, between 10am and 3pm on both Saturday and Sunday, and between 10am and 4pm on Monday. The best time to travel on Friday, Sunday and Monday is before 10am whereas on Saturday it’s after 3pm.

Bob Pishue, transportation analyst at Inrix, said: “We expect this bank holiday weekend 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.”

National Highways lifts roadworks for August bank holiday 

National Highways is reminding drivers to follow its T.R.I.P. vehicle checklist

National Highways is also working to help motorists travelling over the August bank holiday by lifting almost 1000 miles of roadworks. 

A total of 972 miles of roadworks will be lifted and completed in time for the late summer getaway with seaside resorts, airports and theme parks likely to be among popular destinations. 

With thousands of motorists expected to be travelling on the network, drivers are also reminded to have a safe T.R.I.P. and follow National Highways’ new vehicle checklist. 

Senior network planner Frank Bird said: “It’s really important that drivers play their part in helping to keep people moving this August bank holiday because we expect roads to be busy.  

“We’d say it’s good practice to make sure there is enough fuel to reach the destination and we’d also remind people to keep an eye on the gauge during the journey. We’d also say top up the screen wash to make sure you have good visibility of the road ahead. 

“We’re also calling on motorists to plan regular rest stops because we know that long journeys can be tiring. Every two hours we’d advise people to stop, grab a coffee and get some fresh air for at least 15 minutes before carrying on with their trip.”