Long Journey

ElkyElky

I'm driving from Scotland (Dundee) to Kent in the early hours of this coming Monday. I've never driven this far before and wondered if anyone has any tips to make it successful.

I plan on leaving at 2am which means I'll probably hit the Birmingham area around 8/9am. Not really looking forward to Monday morning rush hour. I'm considering delaying it a little so I don't hit the area until 10am or so, which hopefully the worst of rush hour will have passed?

I'm not sure if I should be more worried about Birmingham morning rush hour or London's mid-day traffic.

Also, I assume the motorways (M6 and M1 specifically) will be heavily spattered with speed cameras?

Should have booked the train instead :rotfl:

anewman

A plane would have been another option, or if there's any £10/£19 Travelodge rooms halfway you might opt to stay in one of those for a night perhaps?

paddedjohn

I take it you dont drive long distances often so i would suggest you stopped at Burton in Kendal services M6
j35/36 for a break and then again at Watford Gap M1 j16/17, your total journey is about 600 miles and these stops are about 200 mile gaps. if you do hit the traffic at birmingham its not a bad idea (if you want to spend out) to use the toll road as this could save you the aggro of sitting in traffic.
Dont worry about the cameras, dont speed and you will be ok.

worried_jim

6 hours to get to Birmingham from Kent with no traffic- you want to put your foot down a bit and do it in 4.

davidjwest

You could use the A1 and miss Birmingham entirely, not sure the Nottingham/Leicester area is much better though, not been down that neck of the woods recently.

A1 is usually fine around West Yorkshire even in the rush hour, gets a bit busier near Doncaster though.

Barneysmom

The M6 is nowhere near as bad as it was before they opened the hard shoulder. I'd say it's 90% better. Any time after 8.30 you should be ok to get through that stretch at a pleasing 50-60 mph. There are speed cameras here.
In the even of an accident on that stretch, use the toll road, you can do it in about 19-20 minutes generally.

Get a cooler bag and pack some food and drinks, plenty of water/hi-juice to keep you going. Mints/sugar free gum helps with the monotony

Coffee is round about £2.25 - £3.00 on the services so if you don't want to get clobbered make a flask.

Even allowing for the Brum stretch being free you do still have a few hotspots traffic-wise. Northampton, Milton Keynes and sometimes Luton gets snarled up on a Monday so make sure you get your rest breaks staggered evenly. If you can time your rest breaks well, you can avoid some of the rush hour.

Don't use Newport Pagnell services if you can avoid it, the loos are always dirty, the dirtiest I've ever seen on a m/way service area.

balletshoes

can you break up your journey at all with an overnight stop? If you don't generally drive that far, its a long way, and if you're setting off at 2am, your body clock will be all out of whack too.
I drive around 400 miles up the country to the Dundee area 5 or 6 times a year, it takes me around 6 hours plus, and I've just about had it by the time I arrive.

greenman7

You having posted at 4.47am I can see that you are a bit of a nightbird. I always try to travel on the motorways at night too as the traffic is a lot lighter. I would recommend a caffeine drink, like Red Bull, for when you feel sleepy at the wheel. It certainly wakes me up.

mikey72

A1M and go down the east side of the country.

flyingscotno1

My preferred route from Dundee would be down towards Glasgow then M74, M6, A66, then A1M and M18 before going down the M1 to M25. As to whether clockwise or anti-clockwise it depends on radio and what is happening traffic wise- used to be 10 or so mins in it from M1/M40.

Stephen_Leak

greenman7 wrote: »

You having posted at 4.47am I can see that you are a bit of a nightbird. I always try to travel on the motorways at night too as the traffic is a lot lighter. I would recommend a caffeine drink, like Red Bull, for when you feel sleepy at the wheel. It certainly wakes me up.

I love late night/early morning motorway driving. The closest you can get to "the open road" these days. It almost makes up for having to leave the lady friend on a Sunday night. Long distance relationship.

However, I would recommend energy drinks to try and prevent you nodding off at the wheel and, of course, getting off the m-way for a nap as soon as you feel yourself doing so.