If you’re going to be driving on any of these in the next few days, you’ll need to be patient.
Chris Rea might sing gleefully about being stuck “top to toe in tailbacks” and being surrounded by “red lights all around” in ‘Driving Home for Christmas’, but the reality is not all motorists feel so festive when stuck in traffic during the festive season.
As shoppers travel in search of last-minute gifts, AA Roadwatch have warned drivers to expect jammed roads in the coming days, with no major drop off in traffic expected until this Friday, 22 December.
After that, traffic will still be busy at shopping centres throughout the country on Saturday, 23 December and Christmas Eve, with AA Roadwatch reporting that they regularly see the worst delays occurring in commuter towns.
AA Roadwatch have identified eight routes they expect to be traffic blackspots, which you can see below.
- M50 southbound from J7 Lucan to J17 M11
- M7 Dublin/ Limerick Rd especially between J6 Castlewarden and J10 Naas South
- N40 South Ring Rd in Cork City; particularly between J6 Kinsale Rd and the Dunkettle Interchange
- N11 Dublin/ Wexford Rd from J5 Bray North to Kilmacanogue
- N4/ M4 Dublin/ Sligo Rd from Chapelizod Bypass to J7 Maynooth and also further west through Carrick on Shannon
- N21 Limerick/ Tralee Rd past Patrickswell to Adare and then again to go through Newcastle West and Abbeyfeale
- N18 Limerick/ Galway Rd through Gort and again further north from Clarinbridge to Oranmore
- N20 Cork/ Limerick Rd between Mallow and Buttevant
“Motorists can expect to see a surge in city-centre traffic on Thursday 21 December, as last-minute shoppers try to take advantage of late closing hours to get all of their gifts sorted,” said Elaine O’Sullivan, Editor of AA Roadwatch.
“Meanwhile, on Friday, 22 December, traffic levels will start to build up from 1pm as those leaving city centres around the country make their way home for Christmas before traffic starts to die down again after approximately 4pm.”
While traffic is expected to be light on Christmas Day and St. Stephen’s Day, local town centres are expected to experience mid to heavy congestion on 27 December due to retail sales.
AA Roadwatch and AA Rescue teams will be working throughout Christmas and had the following advice for motorists to avoid breakdowns during the festive period.
- Not all service stations are open on the 25th – remember to fuel-up in advance using the correct fuel type
- Make sure to have a spare wheel as a lot of tyre centres and garages are closed
- To avoid your battery going flat, remember to switch off all headlights, interior lights, heaters and the radio when leaving your car
- Keep a pair of jump leads in your boot
- Prepare an in-car safety kit to include: a demisting cloth, de-icer, shovel, salt/sand, AA Membership card, torch, warning triangle
