As a lot of people know, the expressways in Japan are some of the most expensive in the world. That changed about a year and a half ago if you have an ETC credit card in your car which deducts the tolls automatically at the gates. The government introduced a sort of "all you can drive" plan on weekends and national holidays for only 1000yen, point A to B. Its a good deal, but the increase in traffic has been frustrating to say the least.
In my experience I have found that the Chuo Expressway seems to get backed up the most, probably due to its lack of a third lane and because it leads to the Fujiyama area. My advice would be to plan ahead, and leave very early if planning to drive on the weekends. If you have an iphone, download the app "Highways AOBO" and you can check traffic conditions on any expressway in the country (hint: red means the traffic is barely moving!).
If you are in a rural area, you need not worry about bad traffic as there just aren't as many people driving around, especially in the Tohoku region north of Kanto.
On major holidays (Golden Week, Obon, and Lunar New Year) its best to avoid driving altogether and reserve train tickets in advance. Expressways typically look like this the photo above.
I hate paying money to just sit in traffic, so if you're planning to drive at a typical weekend, escape Kanto early!
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