AIBU to ask how long is safe to drive on a motorway without a break?

Our current car is automatic, has adaptive cruise control and a comfy seat. First time DH drove it down to visit his parents (about 5 hours) he managed without stopping. It used to be a solid 2 stop drive in our old cars, one at a push. He just said he didn’t feel fatigued or in need of a stretch.

I can do about 4-5 without needing a break on motorways easily.

I do the trip from Hampshire to Scotland without stopping - 7.5 hours. I just eat sweets along the way. It’s all easy motorway driving or straight roads though.
DS does the same but he grew up with my “straight through” driving.

DH does the same trip and needs to stop once for food and a wee.

Haha, nah, I just don't drink anything for a while before any long drives!

Don't worry, I'm not quite as strict if there's anyone else in the car, I'm not one of those "We will not be stopping for anything!" people

Either you’ve got a very strong bladder, or very good pee pants!

After a stupidly long drive home from France one year (500 miles in one long slog with breaks) I promised myself never again. I regularly drive 3.5 hours with a quick stop half way, but am planning a road trip to Cornwall next year and will be sharing the driving AND insisting on breaks every couple of hours.

It's daily driving that worries me - folk who get in the car tired, or when the conditions are poor, or with a couple of screaming kids in the car...

It depends entirely on the person, time of day, and how they're feeling.

I can easily do 5 hours without a break sometimes, but other times I need to stop after an hour because I can feel my attention drifting.

DP can't do more than 2 hours without at least a half hour break, she says she starts feeling over stimulated.

About 3 hours for me. Not for safety; I just start to stiffen up in my lower back and feel the need to wiggle my accelerator foot a bit.

I have driven all the way through France with only 1 toilet/quick stretch of the legs break. ExH drove across Italy, then we swopped at Mont Blanc. Was great.

My dad used to drive us overnight to the Costa Brava from England (evening ferry, then hit the road). We were kids, we would just sleep in the car. 12 hours roughly, I think.

I usually drive to Cornwall in 1 go. I fill with petrol the night before. I don't really like stopping, once I'm in the car, I just want to get going. Always have a coffee that I make at home for the start of the drive.

If I get tired, opening the window and blasting on the air helps. I would absolutely stop if I was feeling very tired but I don't really ever set out on a long drive without a good night's sleep.

I can do up to 3 hrs before I get so bored i start zoning out andI need to pull over, re-focus and snap myself out of it. It does somewhat depend on the motorway and driving conditions of course, some present more of a challenge, some really are just big long straight roads moving at a consistent speed with no real interest.

Generally about 2 to 2. 5 hours.

We drive 5 hours to the inlaws, almost exclusively on motorways apart from teh first 5 miles, and stop once.

Stoppong makes me tired.

I have a 3.5br journey i do reassonably regularly without stopping.

Ds really struggles with service stations so we tend to aim for ones we know have stand alone costa or Starbucks in them as they tend to be quieter (and have cleaner toilets!) and the promise of the drink helps him manage a bit longer!

This is a really good point.
For me it's three hours, sometimes less. Also depends if I'm driving alone or not.

We regularly do a 6-7 hour journey and usually stop twice so roughly every 2-2.5 hours for a loo break and coffee

I can only do two hours as I have diabetes, we’re carless at the moment, so it often meant stopping earlier than two hours depending on the availability if services etc.

I work up and down the country, drive 4-6 hrs and then do a full days work, if I kept stopping I’d never get anything done, rule of thumb if you stop for half an hour it adds an hour on to your journey.

I think every 2-3 hours is ideal. I've driven for longer and it was fine, but I do think there is a point at which it becomes irresponsible not to stop and have a break. Even if you think you're fine.

I did a 400-mile trip this week and stopped about every 100 miles. It's difficult with motorway services though as they are not generally restful places but at least there are loos and coffee!

I can do 4 or 5 hours without break generally, but will assess as I go and if I need to stop I will.

I regularly do long journeys for work. So much depends on road, time of day, my energy levels etc. Driving a quiet northern motorway is soooo different from M25 or heading through the Highlands
I tend to do 2-3 hours unless bladder tells me otherwise, but will when feeling OK and reasonable road do 4 hours.
YMMV.

I usually stop at services or similar around the 2 hour mark. At that stage I could go on longer but I think it's better physically to have a bit of a stretch. Plus a great idea to use loos, because you never know if there's a 10 mile tailback after the next junction. 😁

Lorry drivers have to stop by law after 4.5 hours driving for a 45 minute break. They can also only drive for 9 hours a day.

Regularly used to do 4.5 hours and only briefly stopped to refuel if I had to - I’m the kind of person who just wants to get there