Let’s be honest: the M25 isn’t measured in miles. It’s measured in hours of your life you’ll never get back. The average journey time for the full loop? About two hours with no traffic. But when was the last time you saw “no traffic” on the M25?
On a bad day—say, a bank holiday Monday or when it’s drizzling—those 117 miles can stretch into four or five hours. That’s long enough to listen to an entire audio book, learn a new language on Duolingo, or question every life choice that led you to that moment. It’s the longest short road in the UK.
And here’s the kicker: it’s actually getting shorter in some places. Wait, what? Yes—between Junctions 23 and 27, the M25 is being widened. That means more lanes, but guess what? More lanes don’t always mean less time. Sometimes they just mean more cars to fill them. Classic.
The Fun Facts That’ll Make You Smile (or Cry)
Let’s sprinkle some trivia on this asphalt sundae. The M25 is the second-longest orbital motorway in Europe, beaten only by Berlin’s A10. But Berlin’s loop is through forests; ours weaves through Slough and Watford. Prizes for guessing which one has more lorries.
A morning in the home counties | Arnold Zwicky's Blog
It was completed in 1986, and Margaret Thatcher officially opened it. She called it a “great engineering achievement.” I call it the reason I missed my niece’s Christening in 2019. We’re both right.
Also, did you know that at its widest point, the M25 is six lanes (three each way)? But near the Dartford Crossing, it shrinks to just two. It’s like a motorway that has dieted in the middle. No wonder it’s grumpy.
