Road trip warning as 54 percent of families miss out on ‘valuable time together’

With the summer holidays approaching, over 17 million motorists in the UK are set to drive over 400 miles, a new study has revealed that many families are missing out on bonding time during their journeys.

The report, which was published by the mechanic chain Kwik Fit, found that 26 percent of parents with children under the age of 16 said they spend less time doing family activities than they did when they were young.

Roger Griggs, the communications director at Kwik Fit, explained how the extra time spent in the car this summer could help to strengthen bonds between family members. 

He said: “The research shows that car journeys can provide families with valuable time together if they focus on group activity.

“Car games are still a great way for families to enjoy their time on the road and for those who want to try a new game but are not sure of the rules, we have provided a car games guide.”

Kwik Fit’s guide also revealed that 74 percent of people enjoyed travelling on family holidays during their childhood, with 41 percent having good memories of chatting whilst 32 percent playing games such as I Spy and Car Bingo.

However, with many children now having smart phones, games consoles and tablets, many families spend the long journeys doing their own activities.

As a result, 54 percent of parents of children aged five to 16 say they spend time during the journey on solo activities, an increase of 25 percent compared to children of the 1970s.

To help bring families back together this summer, Kwik Fit have given motorists a list of games everyone can play when they’re on the move.

Of course, the list includes classic car games such as I Spy, but some are slightly more unusual in order to keep the trip more exciting.

For example, the company suggested Car Colour Bingo, in which each family member picks a number of colours and has to spot them all before the others can.

Another family game that involves spotting surroundings, Pub Sign Cricket, involves each family member taking it in turns to see a sign of pub and scoring points for every leg found in the title.

For instance, a pub called “The Dog and Duck” would score six points, since the two animals have six legs combined.

Another classic is Animal Trail, in which family members take turns naming an animal that’s name begins with the last letter of the one stated by the previous person.