The UK’s slowest motorways revealed
Choosing a motorway over the more enjoyable B-road should mean an improvement in your journey time, but not if you choose one of these slowest motorways in the UK
TAKING the decision to take a motorway over a more off-piste route should mean you get a reduction in your journey time and a hassle-free journey. Although a recent study of the UK’s motorways shows that may not always be the case, as the UK's slowest motorways are revealed.
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Be it roadworks, a broken-down vehicle, or simply too much traffic causing congestion, getting stuck on a three or four-lane motorway travelling at a snail’s pace is about as frustrating as it gets.
And while life is slightly easier for us motorcyclists, if you can filter onward between the traffic, we still lose out having to travel considerably slower than we would ideally be going.
But which motorways in the UK have the slowest average speed, and which areas of the country have motorways that a best shunned in favour of more enjoyable routes?
A recent study, compiled by Compare the Market, has ranked the top 50 slowest motorways in the UK, along with the top 50 slowest regions of the UK based on average motorway speed.
It is hardly surprising that 11 of the top 50 slowest motorways are found on the M25, although there are some more surprising contenders much further from the congestion of London. The M67 between Ashton Road and Denton has an average speed of just 26mph!
By far the UK’s slowest motorway is the Dartford Crossing, which takes the number one and two spots, with speeds of 24.6mph and 25.1mph.
Aside from the rogue’s gallery of slow-moving motorways, the survey also lists the slowest regions of the UK, as ranked by motorway speed.
Top of the list and officially the slowest region of the UK by average motorway speed is Hounslow, with an average speed on the M4 of just 39.3mph. Other non-London locations in the top ten include Coventry, third place with 48mph, Stockport, sixth place with 49.4mph and Thurrock in eighth with a speed of 50mph.
To check out where your area is on the pecking order, head to: comparethemarket.com
Simon (AKA Toad) has been working within the motorcycle industry for more than twelve years, and a member of the motorcyclist family since birth. Growing up around British-built single and twins, it was inevitable that a life on two wheels was on the cards, from a very early age!
