Traffic · live

Wednesday

A1(M)

The best time to drive the A1(M) on a Wednesday

GO19:00Quietest daytime hour, 59 mph average
AVOID07:00Busiest daytime hour, 54 mph average
Photo: derek dye, Geograph, CC BY-SA 2.0, resized

On a Wednesday the A1(M) is quietest at 19:00, averaging 59 mph, and busiest at 07:00, averaging 54 mph. Measured from National Highways roadside sensors between 1 May 2026 and 15 June 2026, not estimated.

  • Measured, not estimated
  • 1 May 2026 to 15 June 2026

Every hour of a Wednesday

Darker means slower
  1. 00:0054mph9% below normal
  2. 01:0054mph10% below normal
  3. 02:0054mph9% below normal
  4. 03:0055mph9% below normal
  5. 04:0056mph7% below normal
  6. 05:0058mph4% below normal
  7. 06:0057mph5% below normal
  8. 07:0054mph11% below normal
  9. 08:0055mph10% below normal
  10. 09:0056mph8% below normal
  11. 10:0056mph8% below normal
  12. 11:0055mph9% below normal
  13. 12:0056mph9% below normal
  14. 13:0056mph8% below normal
  15. 14:0056mph8% below normal
  16. 15:0055mph9% below normal
  17. 16:0055mph10% below normal
  18. 17:0056mph8% below normal
  19. 18:0058mph4% below normal
  20. 19:0059mphnormal speed
  21. 20:0059mphnormal speed
  22. 21:0058mph4% below normal
  23. 22:0057mph5% below normal
  24. 23:0056mph7% below normal

That is about the same as the A1(M) runs on an average day. Hours outside 06:00 to 22:00 are shown but greyed: the small hours are the fastest on almost every road in England, which is true and useless for planning. Averaged across 11 sensors on the A1(M).

Minutes you save on a Wednesday

Quietest against busiest hour
19:00
59 mph
51 min
07:00
54 mph
55 min

4 minsaved on a 50-mile trip

Other trip lengths: 10 miles saves 1 min, 25 miles saves 3 min. Worked out from the average speed along the whole A1(M) at each hour, so a trip through its worst junction at rush hour loses more than this.

Questions about the A1(M) on a Wednesday

What is the best time to drive the A1(M) on a Wednesday?

On a Wednesday the quietest hour on the A1(M) is 19:00, when traffic averages 59 mph. That is a measured average from National Highways roadside sensors on the road itself, recorded between 1 May 2026 and 15 June 2026, rather than an estimate. Only 06:00 to 22:00 is considered, because the small hours are the fastest on almost every road in England and saying so helps nobody plan a journey. Roadworks, collisions and weather are not in the average, so it describes what this Wednesday usually looks like rather than what today will look like.

What time is the A1(M) busiest on a Wednesday?

The busiest hour on the A1(M) on a Wednesday is 07:00, averaging 54 mph, about 11% below the speed the road runs at when it is clear. The comparison is against this road's own free-flowing speed, so "slower" means slower than the A1(M) normally manages rather than slower than some national figure. Measured from roadside sensors between 1 May 2026 and 15 June 2026. It is an archive of the usual pattern, not a live reading, so check conditions before you set off.

The A1(M) on other days

Same road, different day

Every road on a weekday

The whole week on the A1(M)What is closed on the A1(M) now