São Paulo city sits just under 80 kilometres from an inviting tropical coast. Little wonder that so many of its citizens flock to the beaches by car on the long, hot week-ends of the summer. These days, however, beach-goers often spend more time in the car than on the sand.

Traffic jams make a meal of the journey – so much so that families often pack copious snacks and lots of water – turning the 50 miles into a bumper-to-bumper journey that can take five hours or more each way.