Avoid motorways to save money on the roads this bank holiday weekend

Many of us will be taking to the roads this weekend for a bank holiday getaway and dreading the cost of filling up the car. But there is one good way to save money on fuel.

If you fill up at a motorway service station, petrol typically costs around 184.9p a litre.

But if you go to a petrol station on a major A-road, the average price is about 157.7p a litre.

Similarly, diesel costs 205.9p if you fill up on the motorway, but is about 190.5p on an A-road.

Yes, average forecourt prices aren’t exactly cheap right now.

But they’re a lot less expensive than what you’ll find on motorways.

So it’s worth thinking about where you fill up rather than just heading to the first service station you see.

Big differences in prices

A particularly notable gap between fuel prices on motorways and A-roads was found in the West Country.

If you fill up on the M4 and M5, you’ll be paying 180.9p a litre for petrol.

But on the nearby A303, which connects Basingstoke and Honiton and goes past Stonehenge, the average price is 160.8p.

Further north, petrol on the M1 costs 182.1p and 181.4p on the M6.

By contrast, it costs 167.0p on the A1/A1M.

The takeaway from all this?

Don’t fill up on the motorway if you want to keep costs down and fill up on A roads instead.

Yes, your journey might take a bit longer, but it could be worth it in terms of savings.

“Considerably cheaper fuel on A-roads will show itself as an attractive alternative,” said Luke Bosdet of the AA.

“This summer, the nature of holiday travel pump prices is going to change.”

How do I find the cheapest fuel prices?

If you’re going on a long journey this bank holiday weekend, you don’t have to leave it to chance that you’ll come across a relatively cheap petrol station.

You can get real-time fuel prices on platforms including:

• Google Maps
• Confused.com
• DriveScore
• Fuel Finder UK
• Fuel Spy
• MotorMouth
• PetrolPrices.com
• RAC Fuel Watch 

With this information, you can fill up for less before you set off on your trip, and know where to top up the tank if you’re running low while you’re away.

For more money saving tips, check out our list of 50 ways to cut your fuel costs, so you can start saving money immediately.