Back in 1865, Britain introduced the Red Flag Act, which restricted the speed of horse-less vehicles to 4mph in the countryside, and just 2mph in cities and towns. It also meant three people were required per vehicle: two inside (a driver and an engineer), and one person walking ahead carrying a red flag in order to warn other road users. Now you might be thinking, as I was: why wouldn’t you just… walk? But these weren’t people popping to the shops to grab some milk. These were vehicles intended to haul heavy tools, goods and equipment, and were mostly used for industrial and commercial work.
That said, 1878 legislation did reduce some of the restrictions, and eventually the Red Flag Act was abolished in 1896, and cars were finally allowed to whizz around at speeds of up to 14mph. Wheeeew!
To celebrate this epic moment in British motoring history, 33 of the world’s newest motor vehicles all set off for the seaside – positively gleeful that they no longer had to follow a pedestrian holding a flag. The celebratory journey, which became known as the Emancipation Run, covered approximately 60 miles, from the Metropole Hotel in London to the Metropole Hotel in Brighton.
What happened next?
It didn’t immediately become an annual tradition. Despite a few sporadic attempts to recreate the London-to-Brighton journey, it wasn’t until 1927 that the London to Brighton Veteran Car Run became a proper thing.
The event now happens on the first Sunday in November each year, and travels from London’s Hyde Park to Madeira Drive in Brighton. The catch for joining in though? All participating cars must have been built before 1905 and mustn’t drive any faster than 20mph.
The strict cut-off of midnight on 31 December 1904 is to preserve the “magic” of the cars being experimental and a little bit unreliable. The Veteran Car Club of Great Britain classifies any car built before 1905 as “veteran”, so that’s what they stuck to.
This year, the London to Brighton Veteran Car Run is expecting over 400 old vehicles from all over the world to take part, including the oldest known surviving Rolls-Royce. Royal Automobile Club Chairman, Duncan Wiltshire, says: “Crucially, [it’s] the only known pre-1905 Rolls-Royce eligible to take part in the Run. That makes its return particularly significant, because the London to Brighton Veteran Car Run is all about celebrating the pioneering cars and people that established the foundations of motoring. To have a car from the very first chapter of the Rolls-Royce story taking part is something truly special.”
This year’s London to Brighton Veteran Car Run will start in Hyde Park with a symbolic tearing of the red flag at 6.45am. The first cars will then depart at 6.53am sharp, coinciding with sunrise, and they will continue to leave in waves until around 8:30am. Cars are then expected to start arriving on Madeira Drive in Brighton from 10am. In order to chase the sunset, the deadline is 4:30pm. Since some of these cars date back to the 1890s, they may have very basic lighting and probably shouldn’t be on the roads after dark.
Where can I watch?
If you’re after a bit of atmosphere and some history: I’d get to Hyde Park before sunrise. You’ll get the ceremonial start and see the cars before they set off. On the other hand, if you can travel to Brighton, you’ll see the cars finishing their journey (and, importantly, if they made it there in one piece). There’ll also be a chance to look at them up close and possibly even chat with the owners.
Along the way though, there are plenty of opportunities to spot the vintage vehicles – and they’ll pass through some lovely Sussex villages that are worth visiting irregardless of Sunday’s event.
Here’s when the cars are expected to drive through these key spots:
Hyde Park 6:00–8:30am
Constitution Hill / The Mall 7:00–8:45am
Whitehall / Westminster Bridge 7:10–9:00am
Clapham Common 7:20–9:20am
Mitcham 7:25–9:50am
Coulsdon 7:35–11:05am
Merstham 7:40–11:05am
Redhill 7:55–11:35am
Three Bridges / Crawley 8:10am–2:00pm
Handcross 8:25am–2:10pm
Staplefield 8:30am–2:25pm
Cuckfield 8:50am–2:35pm
Brighton 10:00am–4:30pm
Take a look at the Veteran Car Run website for the full route. Note that the route splits after Westminster, with different vehicles taking different roads before rejoining north of Croydon.
