How 19 Million Drivers Will Make This the Busiest Bank Holiday Weekend Since 2024

This Friday, more than 3.8 million UK drivers will take to the motorways for the start of the late May bank holiday weekend, according to new RAC research. With 19 million leisure journeys expected between Friday 22 and Monday 25 May 2026, this will be the busiest bank holiday on British roads since 2024. And with petrol now at its highest price since December 2022, the trip will cost significantly more than it did last year.

RAC research conducted among 2,218 drivers by FindOutNow, extrapolated to the 34.5 million licensed cars on UK roads, shows that 39% of drivers intend to make a leisure trip this weekend. Friday and Saturday are expected to see the heaviest traffic, with 3.8 million journeys planned on each day. Sunday should see 3.4 million and bank holiday Monday around 3.1 million, with many people staggering their return trips to avoid the worst of the congestion.

When and Where the Traffic Will Be Worst

Transport analytics company INRIX has identified the M25, M1, M5 and M6 as the four motorways most likely to experience serious delays this weekend. Its modelling points to several specific hotspots that drivers should plan around well in advance.

On Friday afternoon, the single worst bottleneck is forecast on the M25 anticlockwise between junction 10 near Wisley in Surrey and junction 6 near Godstone. INRIX expects peak congestion around 4.45pm as workers finish for the long weekend, with journey times on that stretch likely to be more than double those on a typical working day. The same section could see a second surge around midday Saturday as late starters make their getaway.

Heading south and west, the M5 southbound is another flashpoint. INRIX forecasts queues of up to 45 minutes between junction 21 near the RAC headquarters in Bristol and junction 23 for Bridgwater on Saturday around midday. Families making for the Somerset, Devon and Cornwall coasts face the additional bottleneck of the A30 beyond Exeter, which backs up heavily on summer bank holiday weekends and has no motorway-standard alternative west of the city.

Sunday afternoon brings an additional complication. It is the final round of the 2025-26 Premier League season, with fixtures at 4pm and 5.30pm at grounds across England. Drivers travelling near large football stadia should budget for extra congestion between roughly 6pm and 8pm as fans leave. Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham, Leeds and London are all likely to see stadium-related traffic spikes on Sunday evening.

For those who can be flexible, leaving before 7am on Friday or after 9pm avoids the worst of the getaway traffic. On Saturday, setting off before 8am or after 6pm significantly reduces delay risk. Bank holiday Monday morning is expected to be the quietest period for outward travel, though return traffic will build steadily from early afternoon onwards. The AA has issued an amber traffic warning covering all four days of the weekend.

Fuel Costs Are at Their Highest Since December 2022

Drivers face a considerably more expensive tank this year. RAC Fuel Watch data shows unleaded petrol averaging 158.52p per litre across the UK, the highest since December 2022. Diesel stands at 185.92p per litre. Both prices are being driven by disruption to global oil supply caused by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

In practical terms, filling a 55-litre family car with unleaded now costs around £87, which is £14 more than at the same time in 2025. A diesel fill-up costs over £102, a £26 increase year on year. For a family making a 300-mile round trip at 40mpg, the fuel bill works out to approximately £27 in unleaded, compared with around £23 this time last year. That £4 difference may sound modest but across millions of journeys the scale of extra spending is significant: 28% of drivers told the RAC they are “increasingly worried” about the cost of fuel.

Despite the higher prices, only 5% of drivers say they are cancelling a trip specifically because of fuel costs, and a further 5% plan to drive shorter distances. Shopping is the most common reason for travel this weekend, cited by 40% of respondents, followed by visiting family or friends at 39%, and garden centre or DIY trips at 23%.

Drivers can find the cheapest nearby forecourt using the Fuel Finder feature in the myRAC app. Supermarket forecourts run by Asda, Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons typically charge 5p to 8p per litre below the national average. Motorway service stations run by Welcome Break and Moto typically charge 15p to 20p per litre above the national average, meaning filling up before joining a motorway rather than en route can save £8 to £11 per full tank.

Get Your Car Ready Before You Leave

RAC mobile servicing and repairs team leader Sean Kimberlin urged drivers to carry out basic checks before departure. “As we emerge from a period of unsettled, chilly weather, it is important to remember to get your car summer ready,” Kimberlin said. “Checking the oil and coolant is a pre-getaway must, followed by ensuring all tyres have plenty of tread, are in good condition, and are pumped up to the right pressures.”

Oil takes under five minutes to check with the engine cold. The dipstick should show oil between the minimum and maximum markers. Top up with the grade specified on the oil filler cap or in the owner’s manual; a 500ml top-up bottle typically costs £5 to £10. Coolant should sit between the min and max marks on the translucent reservoir. Never open the coolant cap with the engine warm.

On tyres, the legal minimum is 1.6mm of tread depth across the central three-quarters of the tyre, but both the RAC and TyreSafe recommend replacing at 3mm. In wet conditions at 70mph, a tyre at the legal limit takes approximately 8 metres longer to stop than one with 3mm remaining, equivalent to two car lengths. Check pressures cold using a digital gauge and inflate to the figures in your owner’s manual or on the sticker inside the driver’s door frame. Correct inflation also improves fuel economy by roughly 1% per tyre, saving a small but real amount over a long holiday journey.

Screenwash is particularly important in summer when insects and pollen build up rapidly on windscreens. Check that the reservoir is full and inspect wiper blades for streaking or juddering; replacement blades cost from around £8. Air conditioning systems that have not been used since last summer may have lost refrigerant: a recharge typically costs £50 to £80 and takes under an hour at most garages. Research by the RAC Foundation indicates that driving in a cabin heated above 27 degrees Celsius can impair reaction times in a way comparable to a small amount of alcohol, and temperatures of 28 degrees Celsius are forecast for London and the south east on Friday.

Kimberlin also recommends packing enough drinking water for the journey, a mobile phone with a charging cable, and a portable battery pack in case of a roadside emergency. “If drivers have any nagging doubts about how well their vehicle is running, it is still not too late to get them sorted,” he added.

What to Do If You Break Down

Breakdowns are more common on long bank holiday journeys because the extra mileage surfaces pre-existing faults, and because extended periods in slow-moving traffic with air conditioning running places additional load on cooling systems and alternators. The RAC estimates the cost of pothole-related suspension or wheel damage at up to £590 per incident, making pre-departure checks well worth the time investment.

On a conventional motorway, if your car loses power or becomes undrivable, pull onto the hard shoulder where one exists, switch on hazard lights and exit only from the left-hand side. Stand behind the safety barrier and well back from the carriageway. Call your breakdown provider using one of the orange emergency phones on motorway marker posts, which automatically transmit your precise location, or use a mobile and note the marker post number to give your position.

On smart motorways that have converted the hard shoulder to a permanent running lane, aim for an emergency refuge area (ERA). These are blue-signed bays spaced every 500 metres to one mile, identified by orange telephone symbols. If you cannot reach one and the vehicle stops in a live lane, keep your seatbelt on and switch on hazard lights. Call 999, as traffic officers can close the lane using overhead gantry signs within minutes once alerted.

Drivers heading to or from airports face additional pressure. The M25 around Heathrow junctions 14, 15 and 16 and the roads around both Gatwick terminals regularly experience heavy delays during bank holidays, particularly on Friday afternoons and Monday evenings. Building a minimum of 30 minutes extra into any airport transfer is advisable this weekend.

Sources:

• RAC Drive: Late May bank holiday set to be the busiest on the roads in two years
• Fleet News: Bank holiday traffic hotspots revealed by AA and RAC
• RAC Fuel Watch: Live petrol and diesel prices
• Motoring Chronicle: Why Petrol Is Still at 157p When Wholesale Prices Should Have Brought It Down