A-road
A505 traffic and collisions
The A505 is an A-road of 52.5 miles, from Central Bedfordshire to Cambridgeshire. This page covers its traffic at 35 DfT count points since 2000 and the collisions police recorded on it.
- Traffic in 2025 458m vehicle miles
- Average daily traffic 23,895 vehicles a day, both directions
- Busiest section 38,368 A1(M) to Baldock Roundabout
- HGV share 3.7% of vehicle miles
- Traffic since 2019 −2.7% same count points
- Collisions, 2021 to 2025 582 27.0 per 100m vehicle miles
How busy is the A505?
On an average day in 2025, 23,895 vehicles passed each point on the A505, counting both directions. The busiest section is A1(M) to Baldock Roundabout (Hertfordshire), with 38,368 a day; the quietest listed is A5228 to A6, with 6,526.
Busiest sections, 2025
A1(M) to Baldock Roundabout carries 1.6 times the road’s average flow.
| Section | Vehicles a day |
|---|---|
| A1(M) to Baldock Roundabout Hertfordshire · 9.1 mi · HGVs 3.6% | 38,368 |
| A1198 to A10 Hertfordshire · 0.9 mi · HGVs 4.5% | 35,768 |
| A6 to Castle St roundabout Luton · 0.6 mi · HGVs 0.9% | 34,574 |
| A505 to Baldock Lane Hertfordshire · 0.9 mi · HGVs 2.2% | 33,971 |
| Baldock Road roundabout to A1198 Hertfordshire · 1.7 mi · HGVs 3.5% | 31,634 |
| M11 to A1301 Cambridgeshire · 1.9 mi · HGVs 5.3% | 28,558 |
| A5228 to Mount Grace Rd Luton · 1.2 mi · HGVs 2.4% | 27,806 |
| Kimpton Road roundabout to Eaton Green Road roundabout Luton · 0.7 mi · HGVs 2.4% | 27,105 |
| Station Rd to A5065 Central Bedfordshire · 1.2 mi · HGVs 2.4% | 27,005 |
| M1 to A5228 Luton · 0.9 mi · HGVs 3.3% | 26,527 |
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
Route
Central Bedfordshire to Cambridgeshire · 52.5 miles
A505 traffic and collisions by section
30 sections between junctions, in route order. Each is the average of its DfT count points, weighted by length. 3 short link roads and spurs (0.9 miles) count in the road’s totals but are not listed.
Show all 30 sections Tap a column heading to sort
| # | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | A4146 to A5Central Bedfordshire | 21,991 | 26 |
| 2 | A4012 to A505Central Bedfordshire | 13,328 | 11 |
| 3 | A505 to A4012Central Bedfordshire | 13,325 | 23 |
| 4 | A5 to Station RdCentral Bedfordshire | 15,685 | 21 |
| 5 | Station Rd to A5065Central Bedfordshire | 27,005 | 22 |
| 6 | A5065 to M1Luton | 23,493 | 14 |
| 7 | M1 to A5228Luton | 26,527 | 40 |
| 8 | A5228 to A6Luton | 6,526 | 83 |
| 9 | A6 to Castle St roundaboutLuton | 34,574 | 35 |
| 10 | Castle St roundabout to A6Luton | 22,663 | 12 |
| 11 | A6 to Kimpton Road RoundaboutLuton | 19,137 | 17 |
| 12 | Kimpton Road roundabout to Eaton Green Road roundaboutLuton | 27,105 | 5 |
| 13 | Eaton Green Road roundabout to A5228Luton | 19,355 | 8 |
| 14 | A5228 to Mount Grace RdLuton | 27,806 | 21 |
| 15 | Mount Grace Rd to B655Luton, Hertfordshire | 21,156 | 41 |
| 16 | B655 to A602Hertfordshire | 23,964 | 3 |
| 17 | A602 to Old Park RdHertfordshire | 12,501 | 4 |
| 18 | A505 Old Park Rd to A600Hertfordshire | 18,260 | 3 |
| 19 | A600 to B656Hertfordshire | 10,743 | 14 |
| 20 | B656 to Stotwold Rd/Queenswood DriveHertfordshire | 17,844 | 13 |
| 21 | Stotwold Rd/Queenswood Drive to A6141Hertfordshire | 11,325 | 6 |
| 22 | A505 to Baldock LaneHertfordshire | 33,971 | 3 |
| 23 | Baldock Lane to A1(M)Hertfordshire | 30,604 | 4 |
| 24 | A1(M) to Baldock RoundaboutHertfordshire | 38,368 | 46 |
| 25 | Baldock Road roundabout to A1198Hertfordshire | 31,634 | 16 |
| 26 | A1198 to A10Hertfordshire | 35,768 | 4 |
| 27 | A10 to B1368 Barley RdHertfordshire, Cambridgeshire | 14,734 | 15 |
| 28 | B1368 Barley Rd to M11Cambridgeshire | 20,533 | 37 |
| 29 | M11 to A1301Cambridgeshire | 28,558 | 18 |
| 30 | A1301 to A11Cambridgeshire | 21,511 | 10 |
Vehicles a day is the average daily flow in 2025. “Since 2019” compares the same count points. Collisions are those with the A505 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.
A505 traffic by vehicle type
Cars and taxis make up 80.4% of the vehicle miles on the A505. HGVs account for 3.7%, rising to 6.3% on A4146 to A5.
Vehicle mix, 2025
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
HGV share of traffic
| Year | HGV share |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 6.7% |
| 2001 | 6.3% |
| 2002 | 6.6% |
| 2003 | 6.6% |
| 2004 | 6.9% |
| 2005 | 6.7% |
| 2006 | 6.5% |
| 2007 | 6.3% |
| 2008 | 5.3% |
| 2009 | 4.8% |
| 2010 | 4.7% |
| 2011 | 4.4% |
| 2012 | 4.3% |
| 2013 | 4.6% |
| 2014 | 4.6% |
| 2015 | 4.5% |
| 2016 | 4.3% |
| 2017 | 4.1% |
| 2018 | 3.8% |
| 2019 | 3.9% |
| 2020 | 4.6% |
| 2021 | 4.6% |
| 2022 | 4.3% |
| 2023 | 4.1% |
| 2024 | 4.0% |
| 2025 | 3.7% |
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
A505 traffic trend
Traffic on the A505 came to 458 million vehicle miles in 2025. At the count points present in both years, it is down 2.7% on 2019, before the pandemic, and up 3.6% on 2015.
Vehicle miles a year
Like for like, traffic is up 15.1% on 2000.
| Year | Vehicle miles |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 333m |
| 2001 | 337m |
| 2002 | 347m |
| 2003 | 352m |
| 2004 | 337m |
| 2005 | 325m |
| 2006 | 356m |
| 2007 | 360m |
| 2008 | 384m |
| 2009 | 401m |
| 2010 | 388m |
| 2011 | 396m |
| 2012 | 395m |
| 2013 | 393m |
| 2014 | 401m |
| 2015 | 422m |
| 2016 | 459m |
| 2017 | 471m |
| 2018 | 483m |
| 2019 | 469m |
| 2020 | 358m |
| 2021 | 382m |
| 2022 | 421m |
| 2023 | 446m |
| 2024 | 447m |
| 2025 | 458m |
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
Average daily flow
| Year | Vehicles a day |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 18,551 |
| 2001 | 18,791 |
| 2002 | 19,506 |
| 2003 | 19,826 |
| 2004 | 18,983 |
| 2005 | 19,171 |
| 2006 | 20,954 |
| 2007 | 20,095 |
| 2008 | 21,911 |
| 2009 | 22,030 |
| 2010 | 21,626 |
| 2011 | 22,031 |
| 2012 | 22,004 |
| 2013 | 21,863 |
| 2014 | 22,312 |
| 2015 | 23,475 |
| 2016 | 24,113 |
| 2017 | 24,270 |
| 2018 | 24,173 |
| 2019 | 24,650 |
| 2020 | 18,811 |
| 2021 | 19,959 |
| 2022 | 21,974 |
| 2023 | 23,282 |
| 2024 | 23,346 |
| 2025 | 23,895 |
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. In 2025, 9 of the 35 count points were counted; DfT estimated the rest from earlier counts and local trends.
A505 collisions
Police recorded 582 collisions with the A505 as the first road from 2021 to 2025, 145 of them fatal or serious. That is 27.0 per 100 million vehicle miles, lower than the 31.5 for all A-roads in Great Britain. On average there were 2.2 a year for each mile of road.
Reported collisions by year
Up 11.0% from 2021 to 2025.
| Year | Slight | Fatal or serious |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 68 | 32 |
| 2022 | 91 | 32 |
| 2023 | 108 | 33 |
| 2024 | 87 | 20 |
| 2025 | 83 | 28 |
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 |
|---|---|
| A5228 to A6 Luton · 83 collisions | 552.1 |
| A5 to Station Rd Central Bedfordshire · 21 collisions | 124.3 |
| A505 to A4012 Central Bedfordshire · 23 collisions | 115.2 |
| A6 to Castle St roundabout Luton · 35 collisions | 99.6 |
| M1 to A5228 Luton · 40 collisions | 97.6 |
| A600 to B656 Hertfordshire · 14 collisions | 76.4 |
| B656 to Stotwold Rd/Queenswood Drive Hertfordshire · 13 collisions | 53.6 |
| A6 to Kimpton Road Roundabout Luton · 17 collisions | 50.3 |
Source:DfT STATS19,UK Motoring analysis 2021 to 2025 Updated
A further 120 collisions were recorded at junctions where the A505 was the second road; they are not in the figures above. Fatal or serious uses DfT’s adjusted serious figures. 98.8% of the collisions could be placed on a section. How we count collisions
Council areas on the A505
In route order. Each is the highway authority DfT files the count points under.
- Central Bedfordshire
- Luton
- Hertfordshire
- Cambridgeshire
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 | 35 count points in 2025 | 15 September 2026 |
| Reported collisions | Road safety open data (STATS19) Department for Transport Derived statistics UK Motoring | 2021 to 2025 | 582 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.