According to the RAC, major roads will be the least busy since 2011
The RAC estimates that Christmas drive time will not be as stressful this year for motorists, as major routes will not be as busy.
They are predicting fewer traffic jams on major routes during the week running up to Christmas, which is good news for all motorists, who’ll be looking forward to getting home ready for the festivities to begin.
RAC predicts quieter roads this festive season Ā© Copyright Mick Melvin and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence
The RAC claims that 28 million trips will be taken by motorists in the run up to and including Christmas Day and Boxing Day but despite this, the drive home this Christmas will be the least stressful of any year since 2011.
The reason for quieter roads this year is Christmas Day falls on a Sunday. Therefore, motorists will be commuting more during the week running up to Christmas weekend.
The experts from RAC’s Traffic Watch have predicted what the levels of traffic will be over the 10-day run up, including Christmas Day & Boxing Day.
And Christmas Eve, which falls on a Saturday, is set to be the busiest day, with an estimated 3.8 million journeys. Surprisingly however, Christmas Day itself is expected to see 3.5 million journeys taken, the same figure for what will be many people’s last day before the start of the festivities ā Friday 23 December.
It’s the first time in five years that Christmas has fallen on a weekend, meaning the traffic flow on major routes and motorways should be traffic jam free.
However, journeys to visit family and friends over the festive season will cost us more this year, with fuel price increases arriving just in time for Christmas.
The increase in fuel prices means the average motorist in the UK will have to fork out an extra Ā£5 to Ā£6 for a full tank of petrol or diesel this festive season, compared to this time last year.
“With Christmas Day on a Sunday, and with most schools having broken up on December 16, it means many more drivers this year have a chance to space out their Christmas getaway journeys ā and that is exactly what our latest data is suggesting,” said the spokesman from RAC Traffic Watch, Rod Dennis.
The RAC’s estimated journeys from 22-25 December 2016:
Thursday 22 Dec – 2.8 million
Friday 23 Dec – 3.5 million
Saturday 24 Dec – 3.8 million
Sunday, Christmas Day 25 Dec – 3.5 million
Monday, Boxing Day 26 Dec – 3.1 million
Please click here for more information regarding our car leasing services.
