How to beat the early May bank holiday weekend traffic jams

Around 16 million leisure journeys will be taken this bank holiday weekend, with many people (39%) saying they will be heading out to spend time with families and friends.  

The bank holiday getaway will start on Friday 3 May, but the biggest jams are expected on Saturday 4 May when 3.3m people are likely to be on the roads. A further 2.3m and 2.6m separate getaway trips are planned on Sunday 5 and Monday 6 May, and another 5.6m could be made at some point over the weekend.

While many people will be visiting relatives, 14% have said they intend to go shopping, 8% will be having a short break with family and 7% are considering a trip to the coast or the beach. 

Most major routes across the south and southwest are likely to take 50% longer to navigate earlier in the weekend, and the northwest, East Anglia and southwest will be busiest on bank holiday Monday as motorists return home.

If you want to beat the traffic, follow the tips below to help minimise the pain of travelling at this busy time. 

1. Plan your route, and plan your time

The most important step is preparation. First, ask yourself if it’s necessary to travel at peak times. If you can travel either early in the morning or late at night, you’ll miss the worst of the traffic.

There are plenty of useful websites out there to help plan your route, with dedicated sites for Traffic England, Traffic Wales, Traffic Scotland and Traffic Northern Ireland all listing current events and incidents that might affect your route.

Most modern sat-nav systems will also be able to detect if there's traffic on your route and offer detours, but it’s also worth having a physical map in the car just in case the technology fails you.

2. Avoid the busiest roads where possible

At the start of the weekend, major routes in the south and southwest, along with part of the M53 in the northwest are expected to see the worst jams. 

Across most major routes during the weekend, 9am to 6pm are predicted to be the busiest times to travel, so, it's advisable to wait until the evening to travel if you can. 

3. Use your radio’s traffic announcement function or an app

If you don’t have a sat-nav system that can warn you of delays, you can still keep abreast of traffic on your route by using the TA/TP or Traffic function of your car radio. This will automatically switch the station whenever a traffic announcement is being played.

Alternatively, there are several smartphone apps you can download to alert you to traffic in your local area, including Inrix Traffic, Waze, Google Maps and The AA. Just make sure your phone is secured in a holder or cradle if you're planning to use these, because you could get a penalty notice and large fine for using a handheld mobile phone while at the wheel of your car. 

4. Take a break

The Highway Code recommends that you take a break from driving for at least 15 minutes every two hours. There are plenty of motorway service stations that offer respite areas and refuelling spots, but you can also search online for less expensive restaurants and petrol stations away from the motorway. 

English Heritage's website contains a list of scenic stop-off locations close to major transport routes, which you can find here.

5. Keep passengers entertained

If have children on board, make sure you have enough drinks, snacks and games to keep them happy in case you get stuck in a traffic jam. A portable DVD player, tablet or laptop can help keep children occupied watching films and TV programmes, and you can also get miniature versions of board games specially designed for the car.

Children’s website Minitime also has a list of free games you can play with your children in the car, which you can find here, but classics like I Spy, 20 Questions and Hangman are always a safe bet.

6. Prepare your car

The last thing anyone wants is to break down in the middle of a holiday car journey, so take the time before you leave to carry out these basic vehicle checks:

• Make sure your car's oil and coolant are topped up to the vehicle manufacturer’s recommended levels
• Check your tyre pressures and pump up the tyres – including the spare – if necessary, and check tyre tread depth
• Clean your car's wiper blades and check them for wear; replace them if necessary
• Turn on your car's headlights, indicators and brake lights and check that they all work

7. And if the worst happens…

If you do end up at the side of the road with a broken-down car, you’ll want to call out a breakdown rescue service. You can eliminate a lot of the time (and cost) by signing up for breakdown cover before you travel.

You can buy national breakdown cover from as little as £25 per year, but more expensive policies will also cover your onward travel costs and cover you in Europe as well.

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Read more: Our guide to the top 10 pre-holiday car checks >>