REIGATE, England, May 22, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --

Survey shows 2 out of 5 motorists feel they are likely to get caught in a traffic jam this weekend  

The long weekend is upon us and it appears that many drivers are expecting to be stuck in gridlock according to esure's annual 'Bank Holiday Driving' survey, with a staggering 77% of people planning to deviate from main roads and opt to use a B roads or other minor roads to get to their destination in their desire to avoid being stuck in traffic.

On average, UK drivers are prepared to travel up to nine miles out of their way in order to avoid traffic chaos. Some are prepared to go even further, with 10% of those from Yorkshire and Humberside, Northern Ireland and London prepared to deviate by between 20 and 30 miles in order to avoid traffic jams.

In fact, the use of minor roads (21%) and avoiding motorways (13%) are the top tactics British drivers employ to beat the gridlock, followed by choosing unusual destinations to travel to (10%). Conversely, just 4% of people on average will opt to take public transport to avoid traffic, unsurprisingly rising to 18% for Londoners.

Departure timing also featured highly as a getaway tactic among motorists, with almost 10% of those aged 18-34 years old prepared to drive through the night. In the North East, 10% of people are planning to take Friday off while 10% of those in West Midlands and London will leave work early on Friday.

Perhaps the biggest concern in the run up to a bank holiday weekend is safety on the road, as Andrew Lowe, Head of Motor at esure, points out: "Our research showed that even though people will be driving on average for an hour and 35 minutes this weekend, almost one fifth won't check anything on their car before making the journey."

"The importance of preparing and checking your car rises based on the number of miles you plan to travel however it's always essential to ensure your car is roadworthy before any journey."

The list below shows the top five safety checks motorists will undertake this weekend:

1. Check tyre treads and pressure (53%)
2. Check water and coolant (49%)
3. Check engine oil (47%)
4. Check headlights (29%)
5. Check windscreen wipers (26%)

Overall, motorists are expecting to drive 64 miles on average with males anticipating driving for 77 miles, compared to females who feel they will drive a total of 49 miles. The younger age group, 18-34 year olds, will be the most mobile believing they will travel a total of 86 miles behind the wheel.

People in Scotland anticipate driving the least, planning to travel a total of just 34 miles, while 10% of Londoners are staring down the barrel of a journey of between 200 and 300 miles.

However, in typical stoic fashion, almost a third of Brits (31%) will not use any tactics to avoid traffic even though an unfortunate 1% of us expect to be driving for over 15 hours.

Notes to Editors: 

1. Opinium Research carried out an online survey amongst 2,000 UK adults (18+). Results have been weighted to nationally representative criteria.

About esure 

The Group is a UK-focused personal lines insurer founded in 2000 by Peter Wood, the foremost general insurance entrepreneur in the UK and the Group's Chairman. The Group also owns 50 per cent of Gocompare.com, one of the leading UK insurance price comparison websites.

SOURCE esure