Totally OT - Route to London

[TheScullster]

Hi all

Does anyone travel regularly north from London by car?

Daughter is at UCL, and, living in Hull, we have a reasonable rail link to the big smoke. This year she needs more gear transporting, so the car it is!

The AA and RAC route planners give different routes:

Our travel direction will be starting from Hull heading south. AA goes M18 then M1. RAC goes A15, A46 and A1.

The AA planner claims 3 hours 44 mins The RAC planner claims 3 hours 4 mins

Can anyone give recent experience of these routes and advise please? Will be travelling both ways tomorrow (Saturday) so I guess this will have a baring (sp?) on traffice types and volume.

Thanks

Phil

[Steve Firth]

"TheScullster" wrote: [snip]

I used to do that route in the opposite direction from London to Hessle and back. Both sets of timings look like fantasy figures. With current traffic I'd estimate four to five hours each way.

The A15 route is one of the more dangerous in the UK and you will spend a good part of the route behind a truck. If you manage to overtake you will be behind another truck. The route is littered with speed cameras especially on the A1.

Most comfortable and probably fastest journey will be M18/M1.

Check for roadworks before departing though.

[TheScullster]

Thanks for feedback Steve - much appreciated.

Phil

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Depends so much on local traffic conditions etc on the day. The M1 has pretty big road works at the London end. Although they were free flowing but slow when I went through them a few weeks ago. Getting from the end of the major road to where you want in London can also take a big part of the journey time. And route planners ain't to good at that part. I always ignore my Tom-Tom when crossing London.

[Tim Lamb]

There were extensive M1roadworks (20miles)Northbound from Luton recently. Also seemed to cause bunching of Southbound traffic.

Henleys corner is not as bad as advertised outside peak times.

Wave as you go by:-)

regards

[Huge]

Ditto yesterday. Although the narrow lanes and tailgating around J10 are pretty scary.

The Highways Agency website is helpful;

[Huge]

There are roadworks in the Southbound carriageway, also.

We went M1 J13, M25, M40 to Hughenden Manor yesterday, and back the same way. Beware of the tailgaters in the 50mph limited roadworks on the M1. We saw two accidents caused by it.

[Peter Parry]

I've used the M1/M18 a number of times and it tends to take just under

4 hours on a weekday..

I've used the A1/A46 but only as Lincoln and it is usually a slower and more unpredictable route. My choice would certainly be M18/M1.

[Peter Parry]

I go through those both north and southbound fairly frequently and while they run at 50MPH they are, as you say, usually moving well. (Including going north at 18:00 last Friday evening!).

[Robin]

Apologies if you've got this covered but do you have the final bit of the route in London sorted; and the parking there?

If it's one of the UCL properties in Camden then I hope parking is arranged - or that the force will be with you ;)

[Andrew Mawson]

You can send a full sized pallet with up to a ton for only £50 plus vat - pack her junk in a box and send it - bet your fuel will be more than £50 over the weekend and your stress levels will be much lower!

When I regularly travelled to Hull from SE London my preferance was always the A1 A1M - far nicer road to drive on than the M1, but then I was fussy seeing I was doing 60K miles per annum !!!!!!

AWEM

[Huge]

I agree. We nearly always use the A1 in preference to the M1, especially with the widening works round Luton. But I'm only talking about from the Black Cat southwards.

[Martin Bonner]

Also

(although it's a bit late for this weekend).

[Paul - xxx]

Dunno the London end, but mostly the RAC directions _should_ be better, but the AA directions _are_ better!

'It all depends' on traffic. If there's a few trucks on the A15 then you're fecked and you'll be stuck behind them. If there aren't (Sat am might be OK) then it's a nicer driving route, albeit mostly straight roads.

[TheScullster]

Thanks Robin

My daughter is in her second year at UCL (so not in halls) and has a shared flat in the St John's Wood area. Apparently this is north-west (ish) so we don't have to enter/cross the city so much.

There appears to be local parking available from the investigations er indoors has made.

Phil

[The Natural Philosopher]

(bearing)

Coming from East Anglia I always used the A1, simply because I found it better than the A10 or the M11 for that part of London. M1 joins it at IIRC mill hill or thereabouts anyway, so no big deal anywhich way.

I also think the A1 is a slower road - roundabouts and so on - but the M1 is prone to blockages, and its also heavy on traffic.

If be inclined to use the A1 personally - but that's because I have had bad experiences on the M1.

Whichever you are going to be in shit From Apex corner, or Mill Hill anyway..the A41/Finchley road is a bit of a disaster and the alternative

- west end lane - ain't a lot better, either.

Frankly it depends on traffic..put traffic announce on your radio and tune in to radio 2, and make your decision on the day.

[The Natural Philosopher]

yerrs.. I map read my way across country a month or two ago..minor roads. Thought 'coming back, I cant be arsed, i'll just head for the main road' it was slower and less attractive ...what??? but its true.

[The Natural Philosopher]

NICE. That is really west end lane/finchley road then. A1/M1/A41 is the route to take in London.

No M25 at all, thank god.

Indeed. Essentially both routes end up around the same sort of place, so the decision will be more at your northern end than the last X miles.

Looking at Google maps, what's wrong with A15 to Lincoln and then A46?-> A1? is that the RAC route. Definitely shorter..

[TheScullster]

Many thanks to all responders - some useful links there!

Might try M1 to London and A1 return.

Phil

[TheScullster]

Yes that is the RAC route. I have travelled that route occasionally before (not as far as London) and found trucks etc to be a problem - as re-iterated by Steve Firth.

Phil