which route?

NowRetired

I will be going from Newbury to St Austell, Cornwall in a couple of weeks and google suggests 3 routes.


M4 M5 A30


A303 A30


M4 M5 A38.


Which would you, who drive in this area, choose?


I prefer motorways and dual carriageways.

WTFH

What day of the week, what time of day, what car?

I'd choose the A30 over the A38 every time, and I'd choose anything over the A303 pretty much every time.

I have family in Newbury & Exeter. To get to Exeter they normally go A34, M3, M27, A31, A35, rather than straight along the A303.

gilbert_and_sullivan

Depending on the speed you like to travel at i would take the M4/M5 for ease, however avoid Friday after lunch time, or passing Bristol between 0745 and 0900.

After Exeter i'd use the A30 but be keeping an ear out for traffic reports on route, ready to duck and dive if necessary.

TadleyBaggie

The M4/M5 junction has been a nightmare for a while, the whole stretch has been closed some nights.

I find the A303/A30 OK out of season and is my preferred route to the South West.

nickcc

We always use the A30/M5 and M4 when visiting family in Oxford/Warwick, used the A303 to get to Gatwick Summer last year, never again, mind you travelling on the A30 through Temple at peak periods sometimes makes you wish you'd stayed at home.

lostinrates

TadleyBaggie wrote: »

The M4/M5 junction has been a nightmare for a while, the whole stretch has been closed some nights.

I find the A303/A30 OK out of season and is my preferred route to the South West.

We use both m4 and a303 regularly. I agree it depends on day and time of day.

A303 on a Friday afternoon? Can be a night mare on the non dual carriage way bits like Stonehenge.

Luckily we never go that far west. If we did I'd be thinking m4 m5 probably, even though I dislike both motorways!

JimmyTheWig

I agree with the A30 over the A38, so it just becomes a question of how to get to Exeter.
If you prefer motorway driving, why do anything other than M4/M5?

scaredofdebt

What Google Maps suggests:

https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?saddr=Newbury&daddr=St+Austell&hl=en&sll=51.401409,-1.323114&sspn=0.085567,0.154324&geocode=FcFSEAMdls_r_ympW1kvAAJ0SDFQXKf0r2tkxg%3BFZMuAAMdsda2_yljBvgnLUBrSDGIJPGtIGarZw&oq=st+aust&mra=ls&t=m&z=8

mgdavid

I'm just a bit further East than the OP, and always go M4 - M5 - A30