A-road
A533 traffic and collisions
The A533 is an A-road of 30.8 miles, from East Cheshire to Halton. This page covers its traffic at 26 DfT count points since 2000 and the collisions police recorded on it.
- Traffic in 2025 215m vehicle miles
- Average daily traffic 19,143 vehicles a day, both directions
- Busiest section 69,769 A557 Widnes to A558 Runcorn
- HGV share 4.3% of vehicle miles
- Traffic since 2019 +8.0% same count points
- Collisions, 2021 to 2025 185 18.1 per 100m vehicle miles
How busy is the A533?
On an average day in 2025, 19,143 vehicles passed each point on the A533, counting both directions. The busiest section is A557 Widnes to A558 Runcorn (Halton), with 69,769 a day; the quietest listed is Heath Rd, Sandbach to Heath Ave, Alsager, with 4,422.
Busiest sections, 2025
A557 Widnes to A558 Runcorn carries 3.6 times the road’s average flow.
| Section | Vehicles a day |
|---|---|
| A557 Widnes to A558 Runcorn Halton · 2.1 mi · HGVs 5.3% | 69,769 |
| Central Expressway to Runcorn Spur Rd Halton · 0.7 mi · HGVs 5.5% | 64,216 |
| Runcrn Spur Rd to A558 Halton · 1.1 mi · HGVs 6.0% | 47,637 |
| A562 to A557 Halton · 0.5 mi · HGVs 5.8% | 39,494 |
| Chester Road roundabout to Central Expressway Halton · 1.8 mi · HGVs 2.1% | 26,566 |
| A5018 to A533 spur West Cheshire · 2.2 mi · HGVs 4.1% | 18,314 |
| Moss Lane to A534 East Cheshire · 1.7 mi · HGVs 2.0% | 18,029 |
| Junction at A533 Kings Mead & A533 London Road (before roundabout between A556 & A533) to Junction at A533 London Road / A5509 Chester Way West Cheshire · 1.6 mi · HGVs 1.1% | 17,131 |
| Cleaford Crescent to A54 East Cheshire · 0.6 mi · HGVs 4.1% | 14,052 |
| Stone Heyes Lane to A559 West Cheshire · 2.5 mi · HGVs 1.1% | 11,371 |
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
Route
East Cheshire to Halton · 30.8 miles
A533 traffic and collisions by section
22 sections between junctions, in route order. Each is the average of its DfT count points, weighted by length. 3 short link roads and spurs (1.2 miles) count in the road’s totals but are not listed.
Show all 22 sections Tap a column heading to sort
| # | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Heath Avenue to A50East Cheshire | 4,909 | 0 |
| 2 | Heath Rd, Sandbach to Heath Ave, AlsagerEast Cheshire | 4,422 | 10 |
| 3 | A534 to Heath RdEast Cheshire | 11,941 | 0 |
| 4 | A533W to A533EEast Cheshire | 26,026 | 0 |
| 5 | Moss Lane to A534East Cheshire | 18,029 | 20 |
| 6 | Moss Lane, Sandbach to Cleaford CrescentEast Cheshire | 8,500 | 13 |
| 7 | Cleaford Crescent to A54East Cheshire | 14,052 | 13 |
| 8 | A54 to A5018West Cheshire | 7,246 | 7 |
| 9 | A5018 to A533 spurWest Cheshire | 18,314 | 12 |
| 10 | At A533 spurWest Cheshire | 16,180 | 3 |
| 11 | Junction at A533 Kings Mead & A533 London Road (before roundabout between A556 & A533) to Junction at A533 London Road / A5509 Chester WayWest Cheshire | 17,131 | 13 |
| 12 | Junction at A533 London Road / A5509 Chester Way to A533 London Road / A559 Watling StreetWest Cheshire | 8,823 | fewer than 3 |
| 13 | At A533West Cheshire | 11,566 | 0 |
| 14 | Stone Heyes Lane to A559West Cheshire | 11,371 | 12 |
| 15 | A49(T) to Stone Heyes Lane, NorthwichWest Cheshire | 7,315 | 7 |
| 16 | A49 to road ro Rivington RdWest Cheshire, Halton | 6,475 | 9 |
| 17 | A56 to road to Rivington RdHalton | 8,164 | 3 |
| 18 | Chester Road roundabout to Central ExpresswayHalton | 26,566 | 15 |
| 19 | Central Expressway to Runcorn Spur RdHalton | 64,216 | 4 |
| 20 | Runcrn Spur Rd to A558Halton | 47,637 | 6 |
| 21 | A557 Widnes to A558 RuncornHalton | 69,769 | 22 |
| 22 | A562 to A557Halton | 39,494 | 5 |
Vehicles a day is the average daily flow in 2025. “Since 2019” compares the same count points. Collisions are those with the A533 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.
A533 traffic by vehicle type
Cars and taxis make up 80.1% of the vehicle miles on the A533. HGVs account for 4.3%, rising to 6.0% on Runcrn Spur Rd to A558.
Vehicle mix, 2025
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
HGV share of traffic
| Year | HGV share |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 5.7% |
| 2001 | 5.1% |
| 2002 | 5.3% |
| 2003 | 5.6% |
| 2004 | 6.0% |
| 2005 | 5.4% |
| 2006 | 5.0% |
| 2007 | 5.1% |
| 2008 | 4.6% |
| 2009 | 4.3% |
| 2010 | 4.7% |
| 2011 | 4.3% |
| 2012 | 4.5% |
| 2013 | 4.3% |
| 2014 | 4.2% |
| 2015 | 4.2% |
| 2016 | 4.1% |
| 2017 | 4.5% |
| 2018 | 6.5% |
| 2019 | 6.5% |
| 2020 | 6.3% |
| 2021 | 5.5% |
| 2022 | 5.1% |
| 2023 | 4.9% |
| 2024 | 4.6% |
| 2025 | 4.3% |
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
A533 traffic trend
Traffic on the A533 came to 215 million vehicle miles in 2025. At the count points present in both years, it is up 8.0% on 2019, before the pandemic, and up 16.6% on 2015.
Vehicle miles a year
Like for like, traffic is up 31.9% on 2000.
| Year | Vehicle miles |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 172m |
| 2001 | 180m |
| 2002 | 184m |
| 2003 | 193m |
| 2004 | 193m |
| 2005 | 192m |
| 2006 | 196m |
| 2007 | 196m |
| 2008 | 197m |
| 2009 | 198m |
| 2010 | 186m |
| 2011 | 192m |
| 2012 | 190m |
| 2013 | 190m |
| 2014 | 189m |
| 2015 | 190m |
| 2016 | 192m |
| 2017 | 186m |
| 2018 | 248m |
| 2019 | 253m |
| 2020 | 203m |
| 2021 | 196m |
| 2022 | 197m |
| 2023 | 208m |
| 2024 | 208m |
| 2025 | 215m |
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
Average daily flow
| Year | Vehicles a day |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 15,301 |
| 2001 | 16,050 |
| 2002 | 16,247 |
| 2003 | 17,051 |
| 2004 | 17,080 |
| 2005 | 16,921 |
| 2006 | 17,355 |
| 2007 | 17,335 |
| 2008 | 17,418 |
| 2009 | 17,523 |
| 2010 | 16,414 |
| 2011 | 17,006 |
| 2012 | 16,823 |
| 2013 | 16,818 |
| 2014 | 16,699 |
| 2015 | 16,779 |
| 2016 | 16,940 |
| 2017 | 16,379 |
| 2018 | 19,595 |
| 2019 | 19,668 |
| 2020 | 15,771 |
| 2021 | 15,578 |
| 2022 | 17,204 |
| 2023 | 18,171 |
| 2024 | 18,224 |
| 2025 | 19,143 |
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, 7 of the 26 count points were counted; DfT estimated the rest from earlier counts and local trends.
A533 collisions
Police recorded 185 collisions with the A533 as the first road from 2021 to 2025, 52 of them fatal or serious, including 8 fatal. That is 18.1 per 100 million vehicle miles, lower than the 31.5 for all A-roads in Great Britain. On average there were 1.2 a year for each mile of road.
Reported collisions by year
Down 5.6% from 2021 to 2025.
| Year | Slight | Fatal or serious |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 25 | 11 |
| 2022 | 23 | 12 |
| 2023 | 37 | 7 |
| 2024 | 28 | 8 |
| 2025 | 21 | 13 |
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 |
|---|---|
| Cleaford Crescent to A54 East Cheshire · 13 collisions | 422.5 |
| Moss Lane to A534 East Cheshire · 20 collisions | 44.4 |
| Heath Rd, Sandbach to Heath Ave, Alsager East Cheshire · 10 collisions | 40.3 |
| Moss Lane, Sandbach to Cleaford Crescent East Cheshire · 13 collisions | 31.0 |
| Junction at A533 Kings Mead & A533 London Road (before roundabout between A556 & A533) to Junction at A533 London Road / A5509 Chester Way West Cheshire · 13 collisions | 28.9 |
| Stone Heyes Lane to A559 West Cheshire · 12 collisions | 23.9 |
| Chester Road roundabout to Central Expressway Halton · 15 collisions | 20.7 |
| A5018 to A533 spur West Cheshire · 12 collisions | 16.6 |
Source:DfT STATS19,UK Motoring analysis 2021 to 2025 Updated
A further 38 collisions were recorded at junctions where the A533 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 A533
In route order. Each is the highway authority DfT files the count points under.
- East Cheshire
- West Cheshire
- Halton
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 | 26 count points in 2025 | 15 September 2026 |
| Reported collisions | Road safety open data (STATS19) Department for Transport Derived statistics UK Motoring | 2021 to 2025 | 185 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.