A-road

A709 traffic and collisions

The A709 is an A-road of 12.4 miles, in Dumfries & Galloway. This page covers its traffic at 5 DfT count points since 2000 and the collisions police recorded on it.

Last updated
Records analysed
5 count points in 2025
Methodology
View methodology
  • Traffic in 2025 35m vehicle miles
  • Average daily traffic 7,757 vehicles a day, both directions
  • Busiest section 8,882 B7020
  • HGV share 6.1% of vehicle miles
  • Traffic since 2019 −17.6% same count points

How busy is the A709?

On an average day in 2025, 7,757 vehicles passed each point on the A709, counting both directions. The busiest section is B7020 (Dumfries & Galloway), with 8,882 a day; the quietest listed is B7020 Queen St to B723, with 6,836.

Busiest sections, 2025

B7020 carries 1.1 times the road’s average flow.

Sections of the A709 with the highest average daily flow, 2025
Section Vehicles a day
B7020 Dumfries & Galloway · 1.4 mi · HGVs 1.0% 8,882
A75 to B7020 Dumfries & Galloway · 6.8 mi · HGVs 6.8% 8,135
B7020 Queen St to B723 Dumfries & Galloway · 3.9 mi · HGVs 7.6% 6,836

Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated

Route

In Dumfries & Galloway · 12.4 miles

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

A709 traffic and collisions by section

4 sections between junctions, in route order. Each is the average of its DfT count points, weighted by length. 1 short link roads and spurs (0.1 miles) count in the road’s totals but are not listed.

Sections Tap a column heading to sort
Sections of the A709 in route order, 2025 traffic
#
1B7020 Queen St to B723Dumfries & Galloway3.96,8367.6%−6.7%
2A75 to B7020Dumfries & Galloway6.88,1356.8%−22.0%
3B7020Dumfries & Galloway1.48,8821.0%
4Count point 92162Dumfries & Galloway0.24,4920.9%

Vehicles a day is the average daily flow in 2025. “Since 2019” compares the same count points. Collisions are those with the A709 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.

A709 traffic by vehicle type

Cars and taxis make up 76.1% of the vehicle miles on the A709. HGVs account for 6.1%, rising to 7.6% on B7020 Queen St to B723.

Vehicle mix, 2025

Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated

HGV share of traffic

HGVs as a share of vehicle miles on the A709, by year
Year HGV share
2000 7.6%
2001 6.7%
2002 6.8%
2003 6.8%
2004 7.0%
2005 6.8%
2006 6.1%
2007 6.3%
2008 9.1%
2009 8.6%
2010 8.7%
2011 8.2%
2012 7.9%
2013 7.8%
2014 7.7%
2015 8.0%
2016 8.1%
2017 8.3%
2018 6.3%
2019 6.3%
2020 7.5%
2021 7.3%
2022 6.7%
2023 6.3%
2024 6.2%
2025 6.1%

Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated

A709 traffic trend

Traffic on the A709 came to 35.1 million vehicle miles in 2025. At the count points present in both years, it is down 17.6% on 2019, before the pandemic, and down 10.6% on 2015.

Vehicle miles a year

Like for like, traffic is up 4.4% on 2000.

Vehicle miles on the A709 each year, the whole road as it was that year
Year Vehicle miles
2000 32m
2001 33m
2002 35m
2003 35m
2004 36m
2005 36m
2006 37m
2007 38m
2008 37m
2009 37m
2010 37m
2011 37m
2012 37m
2013 38m
2014 38m
2015 39m
2016 40m
2017 40m
2018 42m
2019 42m
2020 31m
2021 34m
2022 34m
2023 35m
2024 35m
2025 35m

Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated

Average daily flow

Average daily flow along the A709, weighted by link length, by year
Year Vehicles a day
2000 7,173
2001 7,505
2002 7,786
2003 7,925
2004 8,007
2005 8,094
2006 8,405
2007 8,565
2008 8,303
2009 8,292
2010 8,217
2011 8,226
2012 8,359
2013 8,425
2014 8,507
2015 8,684
2016 8,896
2017 8,984
2018 9,338
2019 9,357
2020 6,898
2021 7,601
2022 7,409
2023 7,632
2024 7,795
2025 7,757

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 (86.3% of today’s road for 2019). In 2025, 1 of the 5 count points were counted; DfT estimated the rest from earlier counts and local trends.

A709 collisions

Police recorded fewer than 3 collisions with the A709 as the first road from 2021 to 2025, 13 of them fatal or serious.

Reported collisions by year

Police-reported collisions on the A709 by year
Year Collisions Fatal or serious
2021 fewer than 3 fewer than 3
2022 7 4
2023 5 fewer than 3
2024 6 fewer than 3
2025 5 5

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

A further 3 collisions were recorded at junctions where the A709 was the second road; they are not in the figures above. Fatal or serious uses DfT’s adjusted serious figures. 96.0% of the collisions could be placed on a section. How we count collisions

Council areas on the A709

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

  • Dumfries & Galloway

Roadworks on the A709 in Scotland

The Scottish Road Works Register lists 2 sets of roadworks on the A709 in Scotland, 0 of them under way. From the extract of 16 September 2026.

  • A709 Principal Road From C15n At Torthorwald To U44n Near East Tinwald

    Temporary traffic lights On 23 Nov 2026 SP Energy Networks

  • A709 From A75 Bypass Roundabout To Lochar Bridge East Of Catherinefield Road, Lockerbie Road

    Give and take On 4 Oct 2026 Dumfries & Galloway Council

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

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 5 count points in 2025 15 September 2026
Reported collisions Road safety open data (STATS19) Department for Transport
Derived statistics UK Motoring
2021 to 2025 25 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.