August Bank Holiday 2026: Millions of Drivers Face Heavy Traffic Delays This Month

The August bank holiday weekend is approaching, falling on Monday 25 August this year, and traffic analysts are warning drivers to expect some of the heaviest congestion of the summer. The combination of school holidays, holiday departures and leisure trips to the coast and countryside typically makes the August bank holiday one of the three or four busiest weekends on UK roads in any given year, and 2026 is unlikely to be any different.

The RAC and transport data firm INRIX expect tens of millions of leisure journeys to take place in the days surrounding the bank holiday, with the heaviest concentration of traffic expected on the Friday afternoon before and the Saturday morning of the holiday weekend itself. Drivers who have flexibility over their departure time can avoid the worst congestion by travelling early in the morning or after 7pm on the key days.

When Is the August Bank Holiday 2026?

The August bank holiday falls on Monday 25 August 2026 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Scotland’s summer bank holiday was earlier in the year, meaning Scottish schools will already be back in term time by the time the rest of the UK takes its bank holiday. This reduces the cross-border holiday traffic element compared to years when the two bank holidays fall closer together.

For families in England and Wales whose children’s school holidays started in mid-July, the bank holiday weekend at the end of August marks the final few days of the summer break before schools return in early September. This creates a dual traffic pattern: some families returning from longer holidays and others making a final weekend trip before the routine of term time resumes.

Which Roads Will Be Worst Affected?

Based on historical patterns from previous August bank holidays, several routes consistently see the most severe congestion and the longest delays. The M5 between Bristol and Exeter remains the road most affected by summer holiday traffic, as it serves as the primary route from the Midlands and the north to Devon and Cornwall. Queues on the M5 southbound on the Friday before a bank holiday can add more than 40 minutes to journey times in a bad year, and the northbound carriageway on the bank holiday Monday sees similar pressure as families head home.

The A303 and A30 through Somerset and into Devon and Cornwall are similarly congested, with bottlenecks at the Stonehenge junction and through Exeter adding time to journeys. The A30 west of Exeter narrows to a single carriageway for extended sections, creating a hard capacity constraint that no amount of traffic management can fully resolve.

In the south-east, the M25 around the Dartford crossing and the M20 towards Dover and Kent attract significant traffic volumes as families head to the coast and the Channel ports. The M6 northbound towards the Lake District and Scotland is another consistent hotspot, with queues often building from the Birmingham area through Staffordshire and Cheshire on the Friday of the bank holiday weekend.

The routes serving north Wales, including the A55 and the roads accessing Snowdonia and the Llyn Peninsula, also see significantly elevated traffic volumes at this time of year, as do routes to the Yorkshire Dales and North Yorkshire coast from Leeds, Sheffield and the surrounding conurbations.

When Are the Best Times to Travel?

The advice from road traffic organisations is consistent year on year: the worst time to travel to a holiday destination by car over a bank holiday weekend is between late morning and early evening on the Friday and Saturday. If a Friday departure cannot be avoided, leaving before 7am or waiting until after 7pm will result in a significantly less congested journey in most parts of the country.

Saturday travel is least congested before 8am or after 6pm. Sunday tends to be quieter than Friday or Saturday for outbound traffic, with many families already at their destinations. The bank holiday Monday is dominated by return journeys, with congestion building from mid-morning and peaking in the early afternoon as the bulk of travellers aim to be home before the school-night rush.

Those with complete flexibility in their departure times will find the lowest traffic volumes on the bank holiday Monday morning itself, when many people choose to lie in and delay their return, and on the Tuesday morning immediately after the bank holiday, when traffic volumes typically drop sharply back towards normal weekday patterns.

Is Your Car Ready for a Bank Holiday Drive?

A long bank holiday journey, particularly to destinations like Cornwall or the Scottish Highlands, puts more demand on a car than a typical commute. The RAC recommends a series of pre-trip checks that can significantly reduce the risk of a breakdown, particularly in the heat of an August day.

Tyre pressure is the single most important check to carry out before any long journey. Both under-inflation and over-inflation create safety risks and increase fuel consumption. Check pressures against the figure in the car’s handbook or inside the driver’s door jamb, not the maximum figure printed on the tyre sidewall, and remember that pressures should be checked when the tyres are cold, before the car has been driven more than a mile or two.

Engine oil is the next priority. A low oil level can cause serious engine damage if allowed to drop too far, and modern cars may not warn the driver until the level is critically low. Top up to the maximum mark on the dipstick before setting off and take a small bottle of the correct grade with you for longer trips. Coolant level, brake fluid and windscreen washer fluid should also be checked and topped up as required.

If the car has not had a service recently, it is worth having it checked by a garage before the bank holiday weekend, particularly if there are any existing warning lights on the dashboard or if the tyres are visually worn. A tyre that has reached the legal minimum tread depth of 1.6mm across the central three-quarters of its width is more vulnerable to blowout in hot weather and on motorway surfaces.

What to Do If You Break Down

Breakdown rates increase significantly on high-traffic bank holiday weekends, with call volumes to services such as the RAC and AA typically 30 to 40 per cent above normal on the key days. If you are not a member of a breakdown service, joining before the bank holiday weekend is strongly recommended; joining at the roadside after a breakdown is possible with some providers but typically costs significantly more.

If you break down on a motorway or dual carriageway, move to the left-hand lane as soon as you are aware of a problem and try to reach the hard shoulder or, on smart motorways, an emergency refuge area before the car stops. Turn on your hazard lights, exit the vehicle via the left-hand door if possible and stand behind the safety barrier away from the carriageway while you call for assistance. Your breakdown provider’s app, if available, can often pinpoint your location accurately, reducing the time before help arrives.

On A-roads and other non-motorway routes, try to pull well off the carriageway if possible before calling for help. In rural areas where signal may be poor, moving to higher ground or, on the 999 system, advising the operator that you are a breakdown caller rather than a road accident may help emergency services and recovery operators locate you more quickly.

Planning Your Journey

Navigation apps such as Google Maps, Waze and Apple Maps all incorporate live traffic data and can suggest alternative routes when major delays are detected. However, on the busiest bank holiday days secondary routes can quickly become congested as they fill with drivers attempting to avoid the motorways, so setting off at a low-traffic time remains the most reliable way to have a smooth journey.

If you are travelling to the West Country, consider splitting the journey with an overnight stop in Somerset or Wiltshire rather than attempting the full distance in a single day. This avoids the worst of the Friday afternoon and Saturday morning traffic and allows for a more relaxed journey to the final destination. Hotels and bed and breakfasts along these routes do fill up over the bank holiday weekend, so forward booking is advisable.

Sources: RAC Drive | Fleet News