Trunk A-road
A43 traffic and collisions
The A43 is a trunk A-road of 65.8 miles, from Oxfordshire to Peterborough. This page covers its traffic at 23 DfT count points since 2000 and the collisions police recorded on it.
- Traffic in 2025 657m vehicle miles
- Average daily traffic 27,365 vehicles a day, both directions
- Busiest section 49,183 A45 to A4500
- HGV share 10.4% of vehicle miles
- Traffic since 2019 +6.4% same count points
- Collisions, 2021 to 2025 428 14.1 per 100m vehicle miles
How busy is the A43?
On an average day in 2025, 27,365 vehicles passed each point on the A43, counting both directions. The busiest section is A45 to A4500 (West Northamptonshire), with 49,183 a day; the quietest listed is A6116 to A4300, with 6,795.
Busiest sections, 2025
A45 to A4500 carries 1.8 times the road’s average flow.
| Section | Vehicles a day |
|---|---|
| A45 to A4500 West Northamptonshire · 1.1 mi · HGVs 3.8% | 49,183 |
| A413 to A5(T) West Northamptonshire · 2.4 mi · HGVs 9.4% | 48,890 |
| A6183 to A6003 North Northamptonshire · 2.9 mi · HGVs 8.2% | 42,465 |
| A4500 to A5123/A5076 West Northamptonshire · 1.7 mi · HGVs 4.8% | 40,107 |
| Junction where A43 and A413 (slip road) meet, near Hazelborough Wood, Northamptonshire to Junction where A43 and A413 meet (Just East of Silverstone Fields Farm) West Northamptonshire · 3.0 mi · HGVs 11.7% | 39,673 |
| A5(T) to A5123 West Northamptonshire · 5.6 mi · HGVs 11.5% | 39,423 |
| A421 to A422 West Northamptonshire · 1.9 mi · HGVs 11.5% | 38,699 |
| A14(T) to A6003/A6900 North Northamptonshire · 1.6 mi · HGVs 10.6% | 38,171 |
| Roundabout joining A422, A43 and Buckingham Road to Junction where A43 and A413 (slip road) meet, near Hazelborough Wood, Northamptonshire West Northamptonshire · 6.9 mi · HGVs 12.1% | 37,538 |
| At A422 West Northamptonshire · 0.9 mi · HGVs 11.3% | 36,681 |
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
Route
Oxfordshire to Peterborough · 65.8 miles
A43 traffic and collisions by section
18 sections between junctions, in route order. Each is the average of its DfT count points, weighted by length. 2 short link roads and spurs (1.6 miles) count in the road’s totals but are not listed.
Show all 18 sections Tap a column heading to sort
| # | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | M 40 J 10 to A421Oxfordshire, West Northamptonshire | 36,188 | 25 |
| 2 | A421 to A422West Northamptonshire | 38,699 | 14 |
| 3 | At A422West Northamptonshire | 36,681 | 7 |
| 4 | Roundabout joining A422, A43 and Buckingham Road to Junction where A43 and A413 (slip road) meet, near Hazelborough Wood, NorthamptonshireWest Northamptonshire | 37,538 | 18 |
| 5 | Junction where A43 and A413 (slip road) meet, near Hazelborough Wood, Northamptonshire to Junction where A43 and A413 meet (Just East of Silverstone Fields Farm)West Northamptonshire | 39,673 | 4 |
| 6 | A413 to A5(T)West Northamptonshire | 48,890 | 28 |
| 7 | A5(T) to A5123West Northamptonshire | 39,423 | 42 |
| 8 | A43 to M1West Northamptonshire | 15,749 | 3 |
| 9 | M1 to A43 main routeWest Northamptonshire | 14,793 | 5 |
| 10 | A45 to A4500West Northamptonshire | 49,183 | 33 |
| 11 | A4500 to A5123/A5076West Northamptonshire | 40,107 | 31 |
| 12 | Roundabout which connects A43 and A5076/A5123 to A43 Roundbaout connecting with A14 Trunk RoadWest Northamptonshire, North Northamptonshire | 25,266 | 85 |
| 13 | A14(T) to A6003/A6900North Northamptonshire | 38,171 | 30 |
| 14 | A6183 to A6003North Northamptonshire | 42,465 | 22 |
| 15 | A6003 to A6116North Northamptonshire | 15,371 | 8 |
| 16 | A6116 to A4300North Northamptonshire | 6,795 | 4 |
| 17 | A427 to A47North Northamptonshire | 11,398 | 35 |
| 18 | A47 to A1North Northamptonshire, Peterborough | 7,582 | 10 |
Vehicles a day is the average daily flow in 2025. “Since 2019” compares the same count points. Collisions are those with the A43 as the first road, placed on the nearest section by their recorded position; rates (per 100 million vehicle miles) are shown for sections of half a mile or more with 10 or more.
A43 traffic by vehicle type
Cars and taxis make up 72.1% of the vehicle miles on the A43. HGVs account for 10.4%, rising to 17.5% on M1 to A43 main route.
Vehicle mix, 2025
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
HGV share of traffic
| Year | HGV share |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 12.2% |
| 2001 | 12.1% |
| 2002 | 11.8% |
| 2003 | 11.0% |
| 2004 | 12.1% |
| 2005 | 11.9% |
| 2006 | 11.4% |
| 2007 | 11.6% |
| 2008 | 11.6% |
| 2009 | 10.5% |
| 2010 | 10.7% |
| 2011 | 10.6% |
| 2012 | 9.9% |
| 2013 | 9.9% |
| 2014 | 9.5% |
| 2015 | 9.6% |
| 2016 | 9.7% |
| 2017 | 10.1% |
| 2018 | 10.6% |
| 2019 | 10.5% |
| 2020 | 12.6% |
| 2021 | 12.7% |
| 2022 | 11.5% |
| 2023 | 10.9% |
| 2024 | 10.9% |
| 2025 | 10.4% |
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
A43 traffic trend
Traffic on the A43 came to 657 million vehicle miles in 2025. At the count points present in both years, it is up 6.4% on 2019, before the pandemic, and up 12.6% on 2015.
Vehicle miles a year
Like for like, traffic is up 42.2% on 2000.
| Year | Vehicle miles |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 404m |
| 2001 | 415m |
| 2002 | 422m |
| 2003 | 486m |
| 2004 | 493m |
| 2005 | 490m |
| 2006 | 510m |
| 2007 | 511m |
| 2008 | 504m |
| 2009 | 492m |
| 2010 | 486m |
| 2011 | 488m |
| 2012 | 490m |
| 2013 | 488m |
| 2014 | 509m |
| 2015 | 575m |
| 2016 | 573m |
| 2017 | 559m |
| 2018 | 584m |
| 2019 | 600m |
| 2020 | 454m |
| 2021 | 520m |
| 2022 | 601m |
| 2023 | 613m |
| 2024 | 637m |
| 2025 | 657m |
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
Average daily flow
| Year | Vehicles a day |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 18,401 |
| 2001 | 18,937 |
| 2002 | 19,219 |
| 2003 | 22,174 |
| 2004 | 22,469 |
| 2005 | 22,313 |
| 2006 | 23,254 |
| 2007 | 23,284 |
| 2008 | 22,981 |
| 2009 | 22,447 |
| 2010 | 22,173 |
| 2011 | 22,266 |
| 2012 | 22,351 |
| 2013 | 22,225 |
| 2014 | 23,205 |
| 2015 | 23,713 |
| 2016 | 24,100 |
| 2017 | 25,253 |
| 2018 | 25,729 |
| 2019 | 27,114 |
| 2020 | 20,434 |
| 2021 | 23,397 |
| 2022 | 27,033 |
| 2023 | 27,596 |
| 2024 | 26,705 |
| 2025 | 27,365 |
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
The chart counts the whole road as it was each year, so new or renumbered stretches move it. The percentage changes compare only count points present in both years (67.8% of today’s road for 2019). In 2025, 10 of the 23 count points were counted; DfT estimated the rest from earlier counts and local trends.
A43 collisions
Police recorded 428 collisions with the A43 as the first road from 2021 to 2025, 83 of them fatal or serious, including 15 fatal. That is 14.1 per 100 million vehicle miles, lower than the 31.5 for all A-roads in Great Britain. On average there were 1.3 a year for each mile of road.
Reported collisions by year
Up 5.1% from 2021 to 2025.
| Year | Slight | Fatal or serious |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 65 | 14 |
| 2022 | 61 | 16 |
| 2023 | 79 | 11 |
| 2024 | 78 | 21 |
| 2025 | 62 | 21 |
Source:DfT STATS19,UK Motoring analysis 2021 to 2025 Updated
Sections with the highest collision rates
Per 100 million vehicle miles, 2021 to 2025. Sections of half a mile or more with 10 or more collisions.
| Section | Per 100m vehicle miles |
|---|---|
| A45 to A4500 West Northamptonshire · 33 collisions | 167.1 |
| A14(T) to A6003/A6900 North Northamptonshire · 30 collisions | 28.0 |
| A4500 to A5123/A5076 West Northamptonshire · 31 collisions | 25.9 |
| A47 to A1 North Northamptonshire, Peterborough · 10 collisions | 21.4 |
| Roundabout which connects A43 and A5076/A5123 to A43 Roundbaout connecting with A14 Trunk Road West Northamptonshire, North Northamptonshire · 85 collisions | 21.1 |
| A427 to A47 North Northamptonshire · 35 collisions | 19.7 |
| A413 to A5(T) West Northamptonshire · 28 collisions | 14.1 |
| A421 to A422 West Northamptonshire · 14 collisions | 11.5 |
Source:DfT STATS19,UK Motoring analysis 2021 to 2025 Updated
A further 71 collisions were recorded at junctions where the A43 was the second road; they are not in the figures above. Fatal or serious uses DfT’s adjusted serious figures. 94.4% of the collisions could be placed on a section. How we count collisions
Council areas on the A43
In route order. Each is the highway authority DfT files the count points under.
- Oxfordshire
- West Northamptonshire
- North Northamptonshire
- Peterborough
Data sources and methodology
| Figures | Source | Period | Records | Updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Traffic counts and vehicle mix | Road traffic statistics (AADF by count point) Department for Transport Derived statistics UK Motoring | 2000 to 2025 | 23 count points in 2025 | 15 September 2026 |
| Reported collisions | Road safety open data (STATS19) Department for Transport Derived statistics UK Motoring | 2021 to 2025 | 428 reported collisions | 15 September 2026 |
- Annual average daily flow (AADF) is the average number of vehicles passing a point on a typical day of the year, both directions combined.
- Vehicle miles are AADF multiplied by link length and 365, summed over every count point link on the road.
- Sections join count point links between junctions, using the link lines in DfT’s major road database.
- STATS19 covers personal injury collisions reported to the police. Damage-only collisions are not included, and not every injury collision is reported.
- Serious and slight figures are DfT’s adjusted estimates, which allow for police forces moving to injury-based reporting.
- Counts of one or two collisions below Great Britain level are shown as “fewer than 3”.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.