RAC say 14m ‘leisure trips’ will be made this Bank Holiday – thankfully not all via the A494

New research by the RAC suggests at least 14m individual leisure trips on major roads will be taken between Friday and Monday.

The research of 2,500 motorists’ plans for the bank holiday found that the Friday before the bank holiday is once again likely to be busiest with leisure and everyday commuter traffic on the road at the same time – on this day some 4.5m getaway trips are likely to be taken, on top of the millions of normal Friday journeys.

Saturday is likely to be the next most hectic with around 3.8m separate leisure journeys, followed by the Sunday and bank holiday Monday itself, each seeing around 2.9m individual trips planned.

A further 4.8 million drivers told the RAC that they were planning a trip at some point around or on the bank holiday, but hadn’t decided on any precise dates yet.

More drivers could take to the roads based on current forecasts from the Met Office.

With the exception of some eastern areas, early indications are that the weather will warm up significantly with temperatures widely reaching the mid-20s – albeit with the possibility of some sharp thundery showers that could catch some drivers out.

Unfortunately, the cost of filling up the car with petrol or diesel is far higher this year compared to 2017 and 2016.

It is currently £6 more expensive than last year to fill an average 55-litre family car that runs on unleaded, and nearly £7 more expensive for a similar diesel car.

Compared to 2016, it is nearly £10 more expensive to fill a petrol-powered car, and £11 more costly to fill an equivalent diesel one.

Morrisons in Saltney looks to have the cheapest unleaded £124.9 per litre – Asda Queensferry unleaded is £125.7 per litre of unleaded petrol.

RAC traffic spokesman Rod Dennis said:

“Our research focuses on those leisure trips drivers are planning especially because of the bank holiday – so journeys like day trips with friends and family, or perhaps departing for a short break or half-term holiday.

Motorists planning on covering any significant distance should try to avoid Friday afternoon and evening and get away early on Saturday or Sunday to miss the worst of the jams.

But with the UK’s constrained road space, and with road traffic at an all-time high, it doesn’t take much for congestion to occur so the message is to expect queues on some of the busiest routes, especially if the current weather forecasts become true.

The fine weather a lot of us enjoyed over the last bank holiday sparked congestion on some parts of the network and this weekend is likely to be no different.”

The RAC highlights two local routes as being bank holiday ‘hotspots’  the A55 North Wales Expressway, Chester to Bangor and the M53 between Liverpool and Chester.