Trunk A-road

A50 traffic and collisions

The A50 is a trunk A-road of 94.4 miles, from Leicester to Warrington. This page covers its traffic at 87 DfT count points since 2000 and the collisions police recorded on it.

Last updated: 15 September 2026
Data source: Department for Transport
Records analysed: 87 count points in 2025
Methodology: View methodology

Traffic in 2025 1.1bn vehicle miles
Average daily traffic 32,924 vehicles a day, both directions
Busiest section 87,549 A50 (principal) to A5007 King ST to A50 slips to Foley Road roundabout
HGV share 9.7% of vehicle miles
Traffic since 2019 −1.0% same count points
Collisions, 2021 to 2025 605 11.2 per 100m vehicle miles

How busy is the A50?

On an average day in 2025, 32,924 vehicles passed each point on the A50, counting both directions. The busiest section is A50 (principal) to A5007 King ST to A50 slips to Foley Road roundabout (Stoke-on-Trent), with 87,549 a day; the quietest listed is A534 to A5022, with 5,366.

Busiest sections, 2025

A50 (principal) to A5007 King ST to A50 slips to Foley Road roundabout carries 2.7 times the road’s average flow.

Sections of the A50 with the highest average daily flow, 2025
Section	Vehicles a day
A50 (principal) to A5007 King ST to A50 slips to Foley Road roundabout Stoke-on-Trent · 0.6 mi · HGVs 7.6%	87,549
B5640 to A50 Leicestershire, Derbyshire · 2.9 mi · HGVs 10.1%	79,862
B6540 to Warren Lane roundabout Leicestershire · 1.2 mi · HGVs 10.3%	78,051
A5007 to A5005 Stoke-on-Trent · 0.5 mi · HGVs 7.8%	75,017
A514 to A6 Derbyshire · 1.8 mi · HGVs 10.2%	72,143
A520 to A5007 Stoke-on-Trent · 0.9 mi · HGVs 7.9%	70,592
B5029 Grindley Lane to A520 Stoke-on-Trent · 0.8 mi · HGVs 9.4%	65,930
A6 to A38 Derby, Derbyshire · 5.6 mi · HGVs 10.7%	59,940
A511 to A515 Derbyshire · 2.4 mi · HGVs 14.8%	52,025
A521 to B5029 Grindley Lane Staffordshire · 0.6 mi · HGVs 12.6%	52,004

Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated 15 Sept 2026

Route

Leicester to Warrington · 94.4 miles

Schematic route: each line joins the junctions at the ends of a DfT count point link.

A50 traffic and collisions by section

68 sections between junctions, in route order. Each is the average of its DfT count points, weighted by length. 11 short link roads and spurs (4.5 miles) count in the road’s totals but are not listed.

Show all 68 sections Tap a column heading to sort

Sections of the A50 in route order, 2025 traffic
#
1	A50/A6 Intersection to A50 Groby RoadLeicester	0.7	16,639	1.6%	–	16	188.5
2	Fosse Road North to A563Leicester	1.4	22,814	1.8%	+2.4%	24	43.1
3	A563 to A46Leicester	0.4	26,469	1.7%	+10.3%	12	–
4	A46 to STATION ROADLeicestershire	0.7	26,469	1.7%	+10.3%	0	–
5	STATION ROAD to A46(T)Leicestershire	4.2	34,190	5.9%	+11.2%	21	8.8
6	M1 to Council boundaryLeicestershire	1.3	34,261	6.7%	+6.8%	4	–
7	M1 Juntion 24 to Near M1 Junction 24A (just West of that)Leicestershire	0.6	32,845	11.2%	–	5	–
8	B6540 to Warren Lane roundaboutLeicestershire	1.2	78,051	10.3%	+2.1%	3	–
9	B5640 to A50Leicestershire, Derbyshire	2.9	79,862	10.1%	+8.2%	19	5.0
10	At A6Derbyshire	0.2	57,714	10.2%	+10.1%	0	–
11	At A6Derbyshire	0.2	32,464	10.2%	+10.1%	0	–
12	A6(N) to A6(S)Derbyshire	0.3	57,714	10.2%	+11.1%	0	–
13	A514 to A6Derbyshire	1.8	72,143	10.2%	+10.1%	16	7.6
14	A6 to A38Derby, Derbyshire	5.6	59,940	10.7%	−0.4%	23	3.9
15	A38 to A516/A5132Derbyshire	2.6	46,133	13.5%	−5.9%	12	5.5
16	A516/A5132 to A511Derbyshire	3.4	46,420	11.6%	−8.1%	9	–
17	At A511Derbyshire	0.1	48,960	5.7%	−4.2%	0	–
18	A511 to A515Derbyshire	2.4	52,025	14.8%	+0.9%	17	8.1
19	At A515Derbyshire	1.2	51,877	14.0%	+0.6%	15	13.4
20	A515 to A518Derbyshire, Staffordshire	3.6	47,160	14.0%	−7.6%	7	–
21	A518 to A50Staffordshire	0.9	41,463	15.5%	−5.7%	10	15.4
22	A522 to A518Staffordshire	0.4	40,429	15.2%	+0.6%	0	–
23	Junction where A522 Slip Road and A50 meet to Junction where A522 New Road joins the A50Staffordshire	0.2	38,151	16.0%	+5.4%	0	–
24	A50 to Middle roundabout at junctionStaffordshire	0.1	1,698	14.0%	–	fewer than 3	–
25	Middle roundabout at junction to Roundabout with A521 and 50 (near House Farm, Staffordshire)Staffordshire	0.1	1,867	6.9%	–	fewer than 3	–
26	Roundabout with A521 and 50 (near House Farm, Staffordshire) to Junction where A50 and A522 meet (near Park's Farm)Staffordshire	7.5	38,800	17.4%	−8.2%	25	4.9
27	B5029 Grindley Lane to A521Staffordshire	1.1	46,850	12.6%	+1.9%	3	–
28	A521 to B5029 Grindley LaneStaffordshire	0.6	52,004	12.6%	+3.0%	fewer than 3	–
29	B5029 Grindley Lane to A520Stoke-on-Trent	0.8	65,930	9.4%	+2.0%	7	–
30	A520 to A5007Stoke-on-Trent	0.9	70,592	7.9%	−2.7%	12	10.8
31	A5007 to A5005Stoke-on-Trent	0.5	75,017	7.8%	−0.2%	fewer than 3	–
32	A5005 to A5035/A5005 mid-junctionStoke-on-Trent	0.1	82,395	2.8%	−0.8%	3	–
33	A50 main route to A5005Stoke-on-Trent	0.7	12,245	2.0%	−12.4%	12	79.0
34	A50 (principal) to A5007 King ST to A50 slips to Foley Road roundaboutStoke-on-Trent	0.6	87,549	7.6%	−2.0%	5	–
35	A50T to A50Stoke-on-Trent	0.6	23,634	3.0%	+12.1%	3	–
36	A50(T) to A5007Stoke-on-Trent	0.2	33,483	2.3%	+5.6%	3	–
37	A5007 to A52Stoke-on-Trent	1.2	21,100	3.7%	+4.8%	18	40.9
38	A52 to A5008Stoke-on-Trent	0.5	16,113	1.5%	−10.9%	3	–
39	A5008 ring to A5008EStoke-on-Trent	0.3	22,419	1.3%	−0.2%	6	–
40	A5008 to A5006Stoke-on-Trent	0.6	23,588	1.5%	+4.2%	6	–
41	A5006 to A53Stoke-on-Trent	0.4	18,329	1.6%	+4.6%	10	–
42	A53 to B5051Stoke-on-Trent	1.1	13,256	1.3%	−1.2%	19	74.3
43	B5051 to A5271Stoke-on-Trent	0.8	15,201	1.6%	−5.6%	13	60.5
44	At A5271Stoke-on-Trent	0.2	21,184	0.9%	−5.8%	0	–
45	A5271 to A527WStoke-on-Trent	0.9	11,864	1.6%	−5.5%	10	53.0
46	A527 to Gloucester RdStoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire	2.1	14,574	0.9%	+7.7%	11	21.9
47	Gloucester Rd to A34Staffordshire, East Cheshire	0.5	12,548	1.0%	+2.9%	0	–
48	A34 to A5011East Cheshire	1.2	7,280	1.9%	−6.8%	fewer than 3	–
49	A5011 to A533East Cheshire	0.7	11,126	3.4%	+1.8%	fewer than 3	–
50	A533 to A534East Cheshire	3.7	5,737	4.5%	−14.6%	10	25.3
51	A534 to A5022East Cheshire	1.4	5,366	3.8%	−6.4%	3	–
52	A5022 to A54East Cheshire	2.1	11,307	2.7%	−17.3%	7	–
53	A54 to A535East Cheshire	0.3	10,317	2.4%	−7.1%	6	–
54	A535 to Beggarman's Lane, KnutsfordEast Cheshire	2.2	12,321	2.3%	−19.2%	18	36.8
55	Beggarman's Lane, Knutsford to Beggar Man's Lane / A50 KnutsfordWest Cheshire, East Cheshire	5.1	12,321	2.3%	−19.2%	21	18.5
56	Beggarman's Lane to A537East Cheshire	0.7	9,593	1.9%	−6.1%	fewer than 3	–
57	A537 to A5033East Cheshire	0.3	26,070	2.1%	−3.6%	5	–
58	A5033 to Sugar Pit LaneEast Cheshire	0.6	14,716	2.7%	−4.0%	fewer than 3	–
59	Sugar Pit Lane, Knutsford to A5034East Cheshire	1.1	13,257	2.7%	−4.0%	6	–
60	A5034 to A556(T)East Cheshire	1.2	10,630	2.7%	+39.0%	6	–
61	A556(T) to M6East Cheshire, Warrington	4.2	7,575	3.2%	−6.8%	11	19.7
62	M6 to Cliff LaneWarrington	1.8	11,312	4.4%	−7.2%	3	–
63	Cliff Lane to A56Warrington	0.2	12,557	4.4%	−7.2%	fewer than 3	–
64	A56 to A5061 roundaboutWarrington	1.1	16,131	2.5%	+28.7%	18	72.7
65	A5061 roundabout to A57Warrington	1.5	26,643	0.6%	+17.1%	23	33.8
66	A57 to A574 Padgate LaneWarrington	0.2	10,273	1.3%	−5.7%	3	–
67	A574 Padgate Lane to A574 Birchwood WayWarrington	0.4	16,226	0.5%	+2.6%	9	–
68	A49 to A574Warrington	1.2	13,194	0.9%	+16.4%	29	103.6

Vehicles a day is the average daily flow in 2025. “Since 2019” compares the same count points. Collisions are those with the A50 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.

A50 traffic by vehicle type

Cars and taxis make up 72.7% of the vehicle miles on the A50. HGVs account for 9.7%, rising to 17.4% on Roundabout with A521 and 50 (near House Farm, Staffordshire) to Junction where A50 and A522 meet (near Park's Farm).

Vehicle mix, 2025

Share of vehicle miles on the A50 by vehicle type
Category	Share
Cars and taxis	72.7%
Vans (LGVs)	16.9%
HGVs	9.7%
Motorcycles	0.4%
Buses and coaches	0.2%

Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated 15 Sept 2026

HGV share of traffic

HGVs as a share of vehicle miles on the A50, by year
Year	HGV share
2000	11.0%
2001	10.7%
2002	10.7%
2003	10.5%
2004	10.3%
2005	10.1%
2006	10.2%
2007	10.2%
2008	10.2%
2009	9.5%
2010	10.0%
2011	9.9%
2012	9.6%
2013	9.8%
2014	10.2%
2015	10.6%
2016	10.6%
2017	10.3%
2018	10.3%
2019	10.6%
2020	13.0%
2021	12.6%
2022	11.4%
2023	10.6%
2024	10.4%
2025	9.7%

Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated 15 Sept 2026

A50 traffic trend

Traffic on the A50 came to 1.13 billion vehicle miles in 2025. At the count points present in both years, it is down 1.0% on 2019, before the pandemic, and up 8.0% on 2015.

Vehicle miles a year

Like for like, traffic is up 31.5% on 2000.

Vehicle miles on the A50 each year, the whole road as it was that year
Year	Vehicle miles
2000	874m
2001	928m
2002	975m
2003	998m
2004	959m
2005	962m
2006	955m
2007	960m
2008	984m
2009	979m
2010	960m
2011	980m
2012	1.0bn
2013	992m
2014	1.0bn
2015	1.0bn
2016	1.1bn
2017	1.1bn
2018	1.1bn
2019	1.2bn
2020	839m
2021	953m
2022	1.1bn
2023	1.1bn
2024	1.1bn
2025	1.1bn

Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated 15 Sept 2026

Average daily flow

Average daily flow along the A50, weighted by link length, by year
Year	Vehicles a day
2000	25,975
2001	27,582
2002	28,946
2003	29,664
2004	28,488
2005	28,563
2006	28,343
2007	28,488
2008	29,200
2009	29,058
2010	28,484
2011	29,075
2012	29,888
2013	29,436
2014	30,444
2015	30,970
2016	31,711
2017	31,786
2018	32,438
2019	33,546
2020	24,360
2021	27,646
2022	30,826
2023	32,066
2024	33,023
2025	32,924

Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated 15 Sept 2026

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. In 2025, 30 of the 87 count points were counted; DfT estimated the rest from earlier counts and local trends.

A50 collisions

Police recorded 605 collisions with the A50 as the first road from 2021 to 2025, 149 of them fatal or serious. That is 11.2 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 22.8% from 2021 to 2025.

Source:DfT STATS19,UK Motoring analysis 2021 to 2025 Updated 15 Sept 2026

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.

Collisions per 100 million vehicle miles by section of the A50, 2021 to 2025
Section	Per 100m vehicle miles
A50/A6 Intersection to A50 Groby Road Leicester · 16 collisions	188.5
A49 to A574 Warrington · 29 collisions	103.6
A50 main route to A5005 Stoke-on-Trent · 12 collisions	79.0
A53 to B5051 Stoke-on-Trent · 19 collisions	74.3
A56 to A5061 roundabout Warrington · 18 collisions	72.7
B5051 to A5271 Stoke-on-Trent · 13 collisions	60.5
A5271 to A527W Stoke-on-Trent · 10 collisions	53.0
Fosse Road North to A563 Leicester · 24 collisions	43.1

Source:DfT STATS19,UK Motoring analysis 2021 to 2025 Updated 15 Sept 2026

A further 110 collisions were recorded at junctions where the A50 was the second road; they are not in the figures above. Fatal or serious uses DfT’s adjusted serious figures. How we count collisions

Council areas on the A50

In route order. Each is the highway authority DfT files the count points under.

Leicester
Leicestershire
Derbyshire
Derby
Staffordshire
Stoke-on-Trent
East Cheshire
West Cheshire
Warrington

Planned closures on the A50 in England

National Highways has 17 planned closures on the A50 between 16 September 2026 and 30 September 2026, all of them starting in that period. 15 close a carriageway rather than a lane or slip road, and 17 start between 7pm and 6am.

Carriageway Eastbound Entry Slip Full Closure

16 Sept 20:00 to 18 Sept 05:00 Road maintenance
Lane or slip Sawley entry slip road lane closure eastbound

16 Sept 20:00 to 17 Sept 05:00 1 of 2 lanes Road maintenance
Lane or slip Sawley exit slip road lane closure eastbound

16 Sept 20:00 to 17 Sept 05:00 Road maintenance
Carriageway A50 westbound Lightwood exit slip road closure

16 Sept 21:00 to 17 Sept 06:00 Road maintenance
Carriageway A50 westbound Lightwood exit slip road closure

17 Sept 21:00 to 18 Sept 06:00 Road maintenance
Carriageway Eastbound Entry Slip Full Closure

18 Sept 20:00 to 21 Sept 05:00 Road maintenance
Carriageway Catchems Westbound Exit Slip

18 Sept 20:00 to 19 Sept 05:00 Road maintenance
Carriageway A50 westbound Toyota entry slip road closure

18 Sept 20:00 to 21 Sept 06:00 Road maintenance

9 more planned closures in this period are not shown.

Planned closures only: National Highways can cancel or change them, and closures caused by incidents are not shown. Council roads in England are not covered. Roadworks and closures across the UK

Source:National Highways 2026-09-16 to 2026-09-30 Updated 16 Sept 2026

Data sources and methodology

Datasets used on this page
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	87 count points in 2025	15 September 2026
Reported collisions	Road safety open data (STATS19) Department for Transport Derived statistics UK Motoring	2021 to 2025	605 reported collisions	15 September 2026
Planned closures	Transport Data Feeds (DATEX II) National Highways	2026-09-16 to 2026-09-30	2,304 planned closure schemes	16 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”.

How we calculate these figures All data sources

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

How busy is the A50?

Route

A50 traffic and collisions by section

A50 traffic by vehicle type

A50 traffic trend

A50 collisions

Council areas on the A50

Roads that meet the A50

Planned closures on the A50 in England

Data sources and methodology

Related statistics