Seems to me from various threads (London to Newcastle how long etc) that driving on Friday afternoons and evenings is becoming pretty well impossible. Unfortunately, last Friday, I was one who attempted the impossible. A trip from Leics to Dover, almost exactly 200 miles, almost entirely by motorway (M1, M25,M20 and a bit of A46 dual carriageway to start with and A20 dual carriageway to finish. Due to work commitments we couldn't set of unti 1.30 pm and we had allowed 5 hours for the trip. How long did it take? 7 hours, 7 hours to do 200 miles on the motorway, averaging less than 30 mph, admittedly allowing about 10 mins for a stretch of legs at South Mimms. The M25 was murder, something like 2 hours to do 30 odd miles (accident on opposite carriageway but nothing to cause a hold up on ours). Yet I gather that we were lucky; according to Radio 2 traffic news the M6 was virtually stationary from Birmingham to Manchester, M42/A42 the same, as were long stretches of the M5, M1 (Leicester to Sheffield), M60, M66 etc and our queue apparently started at the M3 junction with the M25 and continued to the Dartford crossing. What's the solution? OK tell me to use public transport, but I was going to Dover to catch a ferry to spend a couple of nights near Boulogne, have a nice meal and bring back a rather large number of bottles of the red stuff (Berlingos are designed to carry boxes of wine!!)And of course, large numbers of people finish work on Friday aft. and want to get to places away from where they work. Why shouldn't they be able to use the most convenient form of transport - the car? Why do we expand access to all sorts of other things (TV channels, internet access speed, air transport, shopping hours, pub opening hours etc) yet restrict peoples' access to efficient use of their beloved cars?
Sorry for long post - we were really fed up on Friday night, got to France too late for a meal and had to drive down the motorway to the first services to get a coffee and a sandwich!
Phil
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accident on opposite carriageway but nothing to cause a hold up on ours
An unfortunate side effect of an accident on the other carriageway is that everyone in your carriageway will slow down to try and get a look at the "action". This in itself it enough to cause miles of tailbacks on a busy road.
On a Friday I never try and set off before about 7:30pm. Usually at that time I get a clear run to wherever I'm going. If I leave any later it's just wasted time - I still arrive at my destination at roughly the same time I would have if I set off at 7:30.
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Life is complex; it has real and imaginary parts.
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>> accident on opposite carriageway but nothing to cause a hold >> up on ours
Quite often the delay will be because both carriageways tend to be shut while they bring in an air ambulance, for obvious reasons they won't land or take off while traffic is running. A while back it was quite rare for the air ambulance to be used but it is now getting so difficult to get casualties to hospital in the 'golden hour' by road it is becoming almost essential for any serious injury. Particularly applies to the M25, I'm afraid.
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I now allow an extra 50% for any journeys I make on a Friday afternoon. So I tell my parents in Oxfordshire that it will take me 4.5hrs to do the 190 miles to get to them.
Going north up the M6 is basically impossible, ditto M42, M40 not much better, A34 appalling etc etc. Gave up on the M25 a long long time ago after a Friday afternoon car-parking session on it.
I used to live in Hampshire and would think nothing of driving up to the Lakes on a Friday afternoon, and it would take 7hrs or so. At least I did slightly better than the Lesta - Dover trip.
In the end I moved to Lancashire, Lakes only 90 mins away but going south still a pain. However, at least the M6 moves going South on a Friday, as does the M42, M40 etc.
It is ridiculous though. I always keep thinking that I should get some pre-war car like my late Grandfathers MG NB and use that, cos the average speed is about 40mph, which it can handle fine.
cheers,
Stu
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