Thousands of bikers gearing up for Dave Day

Published

18 June 2025

Press Release

Thousands of bikers gearing up for Dave Day

National Highways is advising motorists to allow more time for their journeys and to plan ahead this weekend with thousands of bikers from across the country heading to this year’s Dave Day in Cumbria.

Many thousands of riders are expected to arrive in Barrow on Saturday afternoon for two days of events celebrating the life of Hairy Biker Dave Myers.

It is the second year the memorial bike ride and charity fundraising event in honour of the TV chef has been held following the first Dave Day in June 2024 which attracted an estimated 46,000 bikers.

The motorcycle procession starts at the iconic Ace Cafe in London, with bikers joining at other rendezvous points including the Oxford Welcome Break Services at junction 8A on the M40, the National Motorcycle Museum in Birmingham and northbound M6 Moto Services at Knutsford between junctions 11 and 12. 

National Highways Northwest Operations Manager Dee Murray said:

“We are advising motorists to allow more time for their journeys with thousands more bikers than usual travelling across the motorway network this weekend.

“The M6 will be particularly busy, especially at junction 36 with the procession making its way along the A590 to Barrow, but also earlier at Knutsford Services, where motorcyclists travelling from the south will gather before completing their journeys north.

“We urge road users to take extra care with motorcyclists travelling in convoys. Safety advice can be found on our website under our TRIP and BikerTek campaigns.”

The new National Highways BikerTek website can be found here It includes a Skills Hub packed with tutorials to highlight the challenges riders could encounter on every ride. Or you can watch the new series of Secrets of Better Riding and follow our team of experts sharing invaluable tips on tackling junctions, reading the road and braking to help you ride smarter. Visit bikertek.co.uk to find out more.

National Highways has worked with partners, including Westmorland and Furness Council and Cumbria Police to ensure everyone enjoys a safe Dave Day, and extra patrols of National Highways traffic officers will be stationed at key locations throughout the weekend.

Live traffic information is available at www.trafficengland.com or from National Highways’ 24-7 customer contact centre at 0300 123 5000. Local updates will also be posted to @HighwaysNWest – National Highways’ regional X feed (formerly Twitter).


Notes to Editors

National Highways is the wholly government-owned company responsible for modernising, maintaining and operating England’s motorways and major A roads.

Real-time traffic information for England’s motorways and major A roads is available via the Traffic England website, local and national radio travel bulletins, electronic road signs and mobile apps. Local Twitter services are also available.

For further information please contact National Highways' press office (24hrs) on 0844 693 1448 and select the most appropriate option:

Option 1: National enquiries (9am to 5.30pm) and out of hours for urgent enquiriesOption 2: North West (9am to 5.30pm)Option 3: Yorkshire and North East (9am to 5.30pm)Option 4: West Midlands (9am to 5.30pm)Option 5: East Midlands (9am to 5.30pm)Option 6: East (9am to 5.30pm)Option 7: South East (9am to 5.30pm)Option 8: South West (9am to 5.30pm)

Feedback