
01Section
Planning an intercity run
Planning starts from the arrival deadline and works backwards. We take the realistic road time for that corridor at that time of day, add the comfort stop, add a contingency proportional to the distance, and arrive at a departure time. A four-hour run that leaves without contingency is a four-hour run that arrives late.
Corridor knowledge does the rest. The M6 through Birmingham at four in the afternoon is a different road from the M6 at ten in the morning, and the toll route is worth taking on one and not on the other. The M1 north of Milton Keynes carries persistent roadworks. Those realities go into the plan.
- Departure time calculated backwards from the arrival deadline
- Corridor-specific timing rather than a generic average speed
- Toll and relief routes assessed against the hour of travel
- Contingency scaled to the distance, not a flat allowance












