New government data reveals the roads to avoid in Cornwall to get to work on time, and whether delays are getting worse.

The Department for Transport figures show that the A30 eastbound, between the A394 and the A3074, had the slowest moving traffic among the major roads in Cornwall in 2018.

This is the stretch between the Long Rock roundabout near Penzance and the St Erth roundabout, where traffic turns off to St Ives.

Vehicles there travelled at an average of just 39.6mph and this was slightly slower than in 2017, when speeds averaged 39.7mph.

That means drivers are losing 26 seconds every mile, when compared with the pace they would have made at the speed limit.

At the other end of the scale, vehicles sped along the A30 eastbound between A388 near Launceston (west) and A388 near Launceston (Central) at an average of 63.7mph, making it the fastest section of road in the area.

The figures include measurements taken at 191 places on the strategic road network - major routes managed by Government-owned company Highways England - in Cornwall.

??STORY ALERT: Road Delays, England.
Across England, motorists suffered a 3.9% increase in delays on motorways and major A roads last year, new DfT figures show. @TheRAC_UK said congestion could be "short-term pain for longer term gain".
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Across England, motorists suffered a 3.9% increase in delays on motorways and major A roads last year.

Journeys took an average of 9.4 seconds per mile longer than if vehicles were able to drive at the speed limit, according to the DfT, up from 9.0 seconds during the previous year.

It suggests that driving along a 10-mile section of road with a 60mph limit typically took 11 minutes and 34 seconds last year, compared with 10 minutes in free flow conditions.

"More congestion means more wasted time and money, which is clearly bad news for drivers, but it may be a case of short-term pain for longer term gain.

"Much work is being carried out on our motorways to improve capacity by upgrading them to smart motorways, but this inevitably causes delays.

"Nonetheless, extra capacity is badly needed as Britain now has around 38 million vehicles registered for use, and in the 10 years from 2007 more than four million extra vehicles came on to the road".

Nicholas Lyes, RAC

In response, the Department for Transport insists millions is being invested to reduce congestion.

"This government is determined to improve journeys for all motorists, which is why we're investing nearly £29 billion to reduce congestion on our roads up to 2025.

"We are also investing £3.1 billion in local projects to make road travel smoother, while our £2.5 billion Transforming Cities Fund will develop innovative public transport schemes to further tackle congestion in some of England's biggest cities".

Department for Transport