How many people will be on the road this Christmas?

According to Auto Express, the RAC and transport analytics firm INRIX are predicting there could be as many as 37.5 million journeys taking place over 2025's festive period. The AA, meanwhile, suggests this Christmas could be the busiest on record for UK roads.

Many Brits enjoy driving home for Christmas as it's chance to visit loved ones or enjoy well-deserved breaks. We wonder how many of these journeys are soundtracked by the Chris Rea classic…

In this post, we’ll look at some of the busiest roads in the UK, just how many hours they may add to your journey and why you should consider Tempcover when it comes to your Christmas travels…

We’ll also offer hints and tips on beating the traffic so you can have one less stress during the busy festive season.

Why are Christmas roads so busy?

As Shakin’ Stevens once sang, Christmas is a ‘time for parties and celebration, people dancing all night long. Time for presents and exchanging kisses, time for singing Christmas songs’.

Who better to do all of this with than your nearest and dearest? Whether people are travelling to see family or friends - or even heading off for a peaceful break away - the result is busy Christmas roads.

Following a survey of more than 10,000 drivers, in which 72% of respondents said they were planning on travelling on this day, The AA has suggested Friday 19 December will be the busiest day for Christmas travel - with up to 24.4 million cars on the road. If you're planning on travelling on this day, prepare for delays.

Meanwhile, The RAC predicts Christmas Eve (24 December) will be the busiest day for travel, with drivers advised to stay off the roads between 2pm and 7pm. They recommend leaving for your destination before 11am if possible.

The roadside assistance company recommend driving in the morning, whichever date you plan on leaving - apart from Monday 22 December, when roads are expected to be quieter after 5pm.

Which roads will be busiest this Christmas?

It's no surprise to see The RAC flag the M25 as one of the key traffic hotspots over the Christmas period, with Junction 15 for the M4 to Junction 19 Watford and anti-clockwise from Kingston to East Grinstead expected to be exceptionally busy.

Other roads predicted to be gridlocked include those around Manchester, with the M60 going clockwise from Junction 7 Altrincham all the way to Junction 18 for the M62 for Leeds facing delays of over half an hour.

The Independent also flags the following roads as Christmas traffic hotspots:

• The M4 eastbound from Junction 29.
• The M6 northbound from Junction 5 to Junction 10A, and from Junction 18 to Junction 24.
• The M1 northbound from Junction 22 to Junction 26.

There are also set to be a number of roadworks, including the closure of the M27 between Junctions 9 and 11 from 8pm on Christmas Eve until 4am on 4 January, and engineering works by Network Rail that will result in more cars on the road.

Below is The AA's predicted number of journeys from Friday 19 December to Christmas Day itself...