Drivers have been warned that if they head out this weekend they will be faced with the busiest August bank holiday on the roads since for almost a decade.
An estimated 19.2 million leisure trips by car are expected to be made between Friday and Monday, says the RAC. This is the highest figure since the company began recording data in 2015.
This comes at the same time that three key intercity rail lines will be interrupted for Network Rail engineering projects, with journeys on the East Coast main line from the capital to Yorkshire, northeast England and Scotland slower and more complicated.
Saturday (24 August) is set to be the busiest on the roads, with 3.7 million getaways planned, slightly ahead of the 3 million journeys planned every day on Friday (3.2 million), Sunday (3.1 million) and Bank Holiday Monday (3 million).
The RAC also believes that a huge number of motorists are still undecided about when they will be heading out over the long weekend, which could add an additional 6.2 million trips into the mix.
Transport analytics specialists Inrix expect delays to last all day on both Friday and Saturday, 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.
Delays are expected on roads serving coastal resorts and on routes for Leeds and Reading music festivals.
Traffic to Leeds Festival will be especially bad along the A1, A1(M), M1, M62 and A64 from Thursday (22 August). Journeys are set to double in length on Friday at lunchtime, along the A1 southbound between the Kirk Deighton and Bramham interchanges.
Anyone not attending the Reading Festival is being advised to avoid junction 11 of the M4 eastbound to Reading, M3 junction 6 at the Black Dam interchange and the Wendlebury interchange at junction 9 of the M40. Festival attendees are advised not to drive to Reading due to the close proximity of the train station to the festival site.
Roads in Kent will also be busy as many people head to Europe via the ports.
The Port of Dover expects to be used by more than 20,000 cars over the bank holiday period – with its chief executive, Doug Bannister, stressing that “that it is still necessary” that travellers “do not arrive any earlier than the two hours requested”.
Research by the RAC found an overwhelming majority of journeys will be day trips, with 84 per cent of respondents saying they will be using their car for days out. Just 10 per cent of drivers say they will be setting off on holiday in the UK or abroad, and 6 per cent will be returning home from a ‘staycation’ or a foreign holiday.
RAC 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.
“It 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.”