Data reveals there are now an additional 2 billion vehicles passing through Devon every year
With the warmer weather ahead of us, many families will be booking staycations for summer, meaning tourist-heavy destinations are set to see a huge influx in traffic over the next six months.
In the last 30 years, road traffic has increased dramatically across the UK with many residents seeing their towns and cities suffer from regular traffic jams, slow rush hour speeds and many vehicles on the roads. The biggest increases have been seen in the counties across the South of England, with tourism causing extremely busy traffic conditions during school holiday periods.
With this in mind, Nationwide Vehicle Contracts conducted a study to discover which towns and cities in the UK are being plagued the most by traffic by analysing traffic increases and the number of vehicles registered in the area. The experts are also sharing tips and advice for nervous drivers being impacted by busy traffic conditions.
Devon revealed to have the WORST traffic conditions in the UK
The results reveal that Devon is the UK’s region most plagued by traffic. The region has seen a whopping 54% increase in vehicles on the road in 29 years, and with the area being a tourism hotspot residents are likely to see delays and busy conditions during the spring and summer months.
There are now 764 registered vehicles per thousand residents meaning over three-quarters of locals have a vehicle of some kind on the roads.
Top 10 regions impacted by traffic in the UK
Somerset ranks in second place with an overall traffic increase of 48% in the past 30 years, closely followed by Cornwall with an index score of 169 and a traffic increase of 55%.
Due to the popularity of the Peak District as a staycation destination, Derbyshire is also expected to experience high volumes of traffic this summer. With an estimated 5.3 billion vehicles on the road, Derbyshire ranks as the fourth most traffic plagued staycation destination in the UK.