Next week’s August Bank Holiday is expected to be the busiest in nine years with an estimated 19.2m leisure journeys by car as drivers go ‘day trip crazy’, new research from the RAC shows.*
Saturday 24 August is set to be the busiest on the roads with 3.7m getaway trips planned, slightly ahead of the 3m journeys planned every day on Friday (3.2m), Sunday (3.1m) and Bank Holiday Monday (3m). Additionally, a massive 6.2m trips are planned at some point over the last long summer weekend of the year, with drivers undecided exactly when they’ll travel.
The 19.2m figure is the highest number of ‘getaway’ trips predicted for the August Bank Holiday since the RAC began recording data for this weekend in 2015.
The RAC’s research also found an overwhelming majority of journeys will be day trips, with 84% of respondents saying they will be using their car for days out. Just 10% of drivers say they will be setting off on holiday in the UK or abroad and 6% will be returning home from a staycation or a foreign holiday.
Transport analytics specialists INRIX expect delays to last all day on both Friday 23 and Saturday 24 August, with the worst times to travel between 10am and 6pm on Friday and 10am and 1pm on Saturday. Drivers are advised to make journeys on Friday evening after 6pm when the worst of the commuter traffic is over, or after 2pm on Saturday following the lunchtime rush.
RAC Breakdown spokesperson Alice Simpson said: “With the end of the school holidays fast approaching it seems day trips will be the main cause of traffic this weekend, so for many drivers it could be a case of ‘day trip delays’. As our data shows, this weekend is likely to be the busiest August Bank Holiday on the roads for nine years, so it’s important everyone ensures their vehicle is in good condition to avoid facing an unwanted breakdown.
“Whether you’re off to a festival, the coast or a theme park or meeting up with friends and family elsewhere, the usual trusted advice applies: leave as early as you can to avoid the jams or be prepared to sit in some lengthy queues.”
