Traffic on Monday after the race.....

[Steve Maund]

When we leave Le Mans on the Monday, we normally take a couple of days to get back to the UK so we miss all the traffic. This year, some of us need to get to Calais and Zeebrugge on the Monday afternoon, What's the traffic like on the motorway's via Rouen or is it better to cut across country and get to the ferries that way?

Answers on a postcard please?

Steve

[NormanD]

Steve Maund said:

Answers on a postcard please?

Steve

No problems

[RonJohnson]

Never had too much of a problem, just avoid Rouen at rush hour.

[Rolls]

We normally leave Le Mans at approx 10/11 am, and the traffic is normally fine at that sort of time!

[daveinbracknell]

we left le mans at 8am last year and hit rush hour traffic straight away. But ok in rouen. Made hon fleur by 11.30 in my old tr6.

[williamp]

The only problem we've found is twofold:

1) the junction onto the autoroute to the east of the circuit. Usually very busy on the monday morning (the teams are leaving by then, too)

2) Rouen at any time can be a pain. But it can also be fine.

[RainerM]

Rouen can be easily avoided taking the Pont de Tancarville or the bigger newer bridge to the west via the A29 then reverting to smaller roads accodring
to your taste.
Enjoy LM :-)
Rainer-CH

[James P]

RainerM said:

Rouen can be easily avoided taking the Pont de Tancarville or the bigger newer bridge to the west via the A29 then reverting to smaller roads accodring
to your taste.
Enjoy LM :-)
Rainer-CH

The second is the Pont de Normandie, quite an impressive bridge.

[Chr1sch]

Never had much of an issue, sometimes a bit of traffic round the peage and Rouen but we always go at around 10:30am and get the tunnel at around 4 quite comfortably with a few breaks

[MiniMan64]

As long as you avoid Rouen you'll be fine, the autoroutes are always clear. We made a completely fatal error two years back while not paying attention and ended up in Rouen town centre Monday lunch time.

We missed our ferry so avoid like the plague.

[Maruchino]

Steve Maund said:

When we leave Le Mans on the Monday, we normally take a couple of days to get back to the UK so we miss all the traffic. This year, some of us need to get to Calais and Zeebrugge on the Monday afternoon, What's the traffic like on the motorway's via Rouen or is it better to cut across country and get to the ferries that way?

Answers on a postcard please?

Steve

Autoroute all the way, no problems in 2009 on the Monday.

[The Leaper]

If you stick to the autoroutes you are likely to run in to delays at two of the tolls. The first is near the end of the autoroute heading up towards Rouen. In 2008 there was maybe an hour's wait in the morning, full of UK LeManers. Then there's the toll at Boulogne where the same problem happened. Both can be avoided by exiting at the previous toll and then rejoining the route later..easily done with a good map, as we worked out in 2009. Of course, if you get the toll transponder you'll have no concerns..

R.

[Del 203]

The Leaper said:

if you get the toll transponder you'll have no concerns..

R.

Really how does that work with a few miles of tail back ?




As has been said choose a previous exit

[SEE YA]

Most people start going around 5-6 in the morning. Then at the ports by lunch time for the tunnel,etc back home.

[James P]

Del 203 said:

The Leaper said:

if you get the toll transponder you'll have no concerns..

R.

Really how does that work with a few miles of tail back ?




As has been said choose a previous exit

And do not forget to behave yourself on the non-motorway stretch as that is policed as well as one of our group found out one year

[SimonBeeeeer]

Steve Maund said:

When we leave Le Mans on the Monday, we normally take a couple of days to get back to the UK so we miss all the traffic. This year, some of us need to get to Calais and Zeebrugge on the Monday afternoon, What's the traffic like on the motorway's via Rouen or is it better to cut across country and get to the ferries that way?

Answers on a postcard please?

Steve

Have allways left on the monday the 4 Times we've been, its nothing like the traffic on the Sunday after the race. We allways get a clear run, maybe a little rush hour traffic if your in town/city areas at 8/9am, but nothing like what we get in the uk.Takes me 1hour to do a 8 mile commute to work at 8am in the Uk!

[ccr32]

If you can bear an early start, and get clear of Le Mans and possibly even Rouen before morning rush hour, you'll be pretty much guaranteed a clear run all the way to Calais.

Providing you don't get lost and end up going via Paris - you don't make that mistake twice, I tell you!

[Nick M]

We normally try and get on the road by about 7.00am. Have only been slightly delayed at the Peage just south of Rouen on one occasion, and clearing the town itself wasn't too bad either.

Although I'm not sure some of the local appreciated some of my manouvers trying to get into the right lane at some of the junctions, but hey, if they don't make the signage or lane markings clear is that really my fault ??! And I wasn't doing it to be an arse, I just found myself in the wrong lane and had to push in slightly to avoid heading off down the wrong road.

On the plus side their puny little horns are no match for the huge air horns on my barge I wouldn't be surprised if the woman who was most vocal in her remonstrations with me still has ringing ears....