Trunk A-road
A701 traffic and collisions
The A701 is a trunk A-road of 68.9 miles, from City of Edinburgh to Dumfries & Galloway. This page covers its traffic at 19 DfT count points since 2000 and the collisions police recorded on it.
- Traffic in 2025 114m vehicle miles
- Average daily traffic 4,544 vehicles a day, both directions
- Busiest section 18,953 A720 to A768
- HGV share 5.6% of vehicle miles
- Traffic since 2019 −8.8% same count points
- Collisions, 2021 to 2025 134 24.1 per 100m vehicle miles
How busy is the A701?
On an average day in 2025, 4,544 vehicles passed each point on the A701, counting both directions. The busiest section is A720 to A768 (Midlothian), with 18,953 a day; the quietest listed is B712 to A708, with 958.
Busiest sections, 2025
A720 to A768 carries 4.2 times the road’s average flow.
| Section | Vehicles a day |
|---|---|
| A720 to A768 Midlothian · 1.2 mi · HGVs 3.6% | 18,953 |
| A768 to A703 Midlothian · 1.0 mi · HGVs 1.8% | 16,305 |
| A772 to Southhouse Broadway City of Edinburgh · 2.1 mi · HGVs 1.9% | 14,867 |
| A7 to A772 City of Edinburgh · 1.2 mi · HGVs 1.8% | 12,483 |
| A703 to A766 Midlothian · 3.0 mi · HGVs 1.4% | 11,811 |
| A766 to B6372 Pomathorn Rd Midlothian · 0.7 mi · HGVs 1.8% | 8,783 |
| Quarry Rd, Locharbriggs to A75 Dumfries & Galloway · 1.6 mi · HGVs 7.5% | 7,821 |
| A708 to A74(M) jn15 Dumfries & Galloway · 1.6 mi · HGVs 3.6% | 6,110 |
| C-road St Ann's to Quarry Rd, Locharbriggs Dumfries & Galloway · 10.1 mi · HGVs 10.6% | 5,866 |
| At A701 Dumfries & Galloway · 1.1 mi · HGVs 1.4% | 5,310 |
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
Route
City of Edinburgh to Dumfries & Galloway · 68.9 miles
A701 traffic and collisions by section
17 sections between junctions, in route order. Each is the average of its DfT count points, weighted by length.
Show all 17 sections Tap a column heading to sort
| # | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | A7 to A772City of Edinburgh | 12,483 | 28 |
| 2 | A772 to Southhouse BroadwayCity of Edinburgh | 14,867 | 19 |
| 3 | Southhouse Broadway to A720City of Edinburgh | 13,529 | 5 |
| 4 | A720 to A768Midlothian | 18,953 | 10 |
| 5 | A768 to A703Midlothian | 16,305 | 0 |
| 6 | A703 to A766Midlothian | 11,811 | 14 |
| 7 | A766 to B6372 Pomathorn RdMidlothian | 8,783 | fewer than 3 |
| 8 | B6372 Pomathorn Rd to A703/A6094Midlothian | 2,725 | fewer than 3 |
| 9 | A6094 / A703 to A72Midlothian, Scottish Borders | 2,602 | 6 |
| 10 | A72 to B712Scottish Borders | 1,334 | fewer than 3 |
| 11 | B712 to A708Scottish Borders, Dumfries & Galloway | 958 | 12 |
| 12 | A708 to A74(M) jn15Dumfries & Galloway | 6,110 | 4 |
| 13 | A74M to C-road St Ann'sDumfries & Galloway | 4,718 | 11 |
| 14 | C-road St Ann's to Quarry Rd, LocharbriggsDumfries & Galloway | 5,866 | 16 |
| 15 | Quarry Rd, Locharbriggs to A75Dumfries & Galloway | 7,821 | fewer than 3 |
| 16 | A75 to Moffat RdDumfries & Galloway | 12,892 | fewer than 3 |
| 17 | At A701Dumfries & Galloway | 5,310 | fewer than 3 |
Vehicles a day is the average daily flow in 2025. “Since 2019” compares the same count points. Collisions are those with the A701 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.
A701 traffic by vehicle type
Cars and taxis make up 73.1% of the vehicle miles on the A701. HGVs account for 5.6%, rising to 12.7% on A74M to C-road St Ann's.
Vehicle mix, 2025
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
HGV share of traffic
| Year | HGV share |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 6.2% |
| 2001 | 6.2% |
| 2002 | 4.5% |
| 2003 | 4.3% |
| 2004 | 4.5% |
| 2005 | 4.5% |
| 2006 | 5.9% |
| 2007 | 6.1% |
| 2008 | 6.3% |
| 2009 | 6.0% |
| 2010 | 6.1% |
| 2011 | 6.1% |
| 2012 | 6.2% |
| 2013 | 6.2% |
| 2014 | 6.1% |
| 2015 | 6.2% |
| 2016 | 6.2% |
| 2017 | 6.2% |
| 2018 | 6.2% |
| 2019 | 6.1% |
| 2020 | 6.8% |
| 2021 | 6.5% |
| 2022 | 5.8% |
| 2023 | 5.6% |
| 2024 | 5.6% |
| 2025 | 5.6% |
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
A701 traffic trend
Traffic on the A701 came to 114 million vehicle miles in 2025. At the count points present in both years, it is down 8.8% on 2019, before the pandemic, and down 8.7% on 2015.
Vehicle miles a year
Like for like, traffic is down 9.5% on 2000.
| Year | Vehicle miles |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 127m |
| 2001 | 129m |
| 2002 | 144m |
| 2003 | 143m |
| 2004 | 143m |
| 2005 | 142m |
| 2006 | 129m |
| 2007 | 132m |
| 2008 | 130m |
| 2009 | 130m |
| 2010 | 127m |
| 2011 | 125m |
| 2012 | 121m |
| 2013 | 121m |
| 2014 | 124m |
| 2015 | 128m |
| 2016 | 131m |
| 2017 | 128m |
| 2018 | 128m |
| 2019 | 128m |
| 2020 | 96m |
| 2021 | 105m |
| 2022 | 110m |
| 2023 | 112m |
| 2024 | 114m |
| 2025 | 114m |
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
Average daily flow
| Year | Vehicles a day |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 5,137 |
| 2001 | 5,236 |
| 2002 | 5,747 |
| 2003 | 5,709 |
| 2004 | 5,702 |
| 2005 | 5,639 |
| 2006 | 5,155 |
| 2007 | 5,240 |
| 2008 | 5,192 |
| 2009 | 5,197 |
| 2010 | 5,051 |
| 2011 | 4,990 |
| 2012 | 4,801 |
| 2013 | 4,803 |
| 2014 | 4,925 |
| 2015 | 5,080 |
| 2016 | 5,223 |
| 2017 | 5,093 |
| 2018 | 5,096 |
| 2019 | 5,102 |
| 2020 | 3,813 |
| 2021 | 4,188 |
| 2022 | 4,372 |
| 2023 | 4,452 |
| 2024 | 4,536 |
| 2025 | 4,544 |
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, 3 of the 19 count points were counted; DfT estimated the rest from earlier counts and local trends.
A701 collisions
Police recorded 134 collisions with the A701 as the first road from 2021 to 2025, 53 of them fatal or serious. That is 24.1 per 100 million vehicle miles, lower than the 31.5 for all A-roads in Great Britain. On average there were 0.4 a year for each mile of road.
Reported collisions by year
Up 13.0% from 2021 to 2025.
| Year | Slight | Fatal or serious |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 13 | 10 |
| 2022 | 26 | 9 |
| 2023 | 12 | 9 |
| 2024 | 18 | 11 |
| 2025 | 12 | 14 |
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 |
|---|---|
| A7 to A772 City of Edinburgh · 28 collisions | 105.7 |
| A772 to Southhouse Broadway City of Edinburgh · 19 collisions | 34.4 |
| B712 to A708 Scottish Borders, Dumfries & Galloway · 12 collisions | 32.8 |
| A720 to A768 Midlothian · 10 collisions | 24.9 |
| A703 to A766 Midlothian · 14 collisions | 21.5 |
| A74M to C-road St Ann's Dumfries & Galloway · 11 collisions | 21.2 |
| C-road St Ann's to Quarry Rd, Locharbriggs Dumfries & Galloway · 16 collisions | 15.1 |
Source:DfT STATS19,UK Motoring analysis 2021 to 2025 Updated
A further 19 collisions were recorded at junctions where the A701 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 A701
In route order. Each is the highway authority DfT files the count points under.
- City of Edinburgh
- Midlothian
- Scottish Borders
- Dumfries & Galloway
Roadworks on the A701 in Scotland
The Scottish Road Works Register lists 20 sets of roadworks on the A701 in Scotland, 4 of them under way. 6 close the road, a lane or a slip road. From the extract of 16 September 2026.
-
A701t From B7076 To A74m Roundabout, Beattock
-
A701t From A74m Roundabout North Carriageway To A74m Roundabout South Carriageway, Beattock
-
A701t From B7076 To A74m Roundabout, Beattock
-
A701t Roundabout With A74m And B7076 Road, Beattock
-
A701t From Private Access At Hartfield Cottage To C98a, St Anns
-
A701t From C98a To U320a, St Anns
Works in Scotland only, and only where the register records them against the road number. The register publishes one extract a day, so works can start, finish or change after it is taken. Roadworks across Scotland
Source:SRWR Extract of 2026-09-16 Updated
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 | 19 count points in 2025 | 15 September 2026 |
| Reported collisions | Road safety open data (STATS19) Department for Transport Derived statistics UK Motoring | 2021 to 2025 | 134 reported collisions | 15 September 2026 |
| Roadworks | Scottish Road Works Register open data Scottish Road Works Commissioner | Extract of 2026-09-16 | 22,074 sets of roadworks recorded in Scotland | 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”.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.