A-road
A801 traffic and collisions
The A801 is an A-road of 9.3 miles, from West Lothian to Falkirk. This page covers its traffic at 8 DfT count points since 2000 and the collisions police recorded on it.
- Traffic in 2025 42m vehicle miles
- Average daily traffic 12,458 vehicles a day, both directions
- Busiest section 16,823 M8 to A706
- HGV share 7.5% of vehicle miles
- Traffic since 2019 −10.4% same count points
- Collisions, 2021 to 2025 31 15.2 per 100m vehicle miles
How busy is the A801?
On an average day in 2025, 12,458 vehicles passed each point on the A801, counting both directions. The busiest section is M8 to A706 (West Lothian), with 16,823 a day; the quietest listed is A89 to A800, with 9,850.
Busiest sections, 2025
M8 to A706 carries 1.4 times the road’s average flow.
| Section | Vehicles a day |
|---|---|
| M8 to A706 West Lothian · 0.7 mi · HGVs 8.6% | 16,823 |
| A706 to A89 West Lothian · 1.6 mi · HGVs 4.9% | 15,941 |
| A800 to A801 West Lothian · 1.6 mi · HGVs 7.8% | 13,853 |
| A706 to B805/B825 West Lothian, Falkirk · 1.6 mi · HGVs 8.6% | 10,775 |
| B805/B825 to M9 jn4 Falkirk · 2.0 mi · HGVs 8.1% | 10,472 |
| A89 to A800 West Lothian · 1.4 mi · HGVs 8.6% | 9,850 |
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
Route
West Lothian to Falkirk · 9.3 miles
A801 traffic and collisions by section
7 sections between junctions, in route order. Each is the average of its DfT count points, weighted by length.
Sections Tap a column heading to sort
| # | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | A705 to M8West Lothian | 11,106 | fewer than 3 |
| 2 | M8 to A706West Lothian | 16,823 | 4 |
| 3 | A706 to A89West Lothian | 15,941 | 9 |
| 4 | A89 to A800West Lothian | 9,850 | fewer than 3 |
| 5 | A800 to A801West Lothian | 13,853 | fewer than 3 |
| 6 | A706 to B805/B825West Lothian, Falkirk | 10,775 | 11 |
| 7 | B805/B825 to M9 jn4Falkirk | 10,472 | 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 A801 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.
A801 traffic by vehicle type
Cars and taxis make up 67.3% of the vehicle miles on the A801. HGVs account for 7.5%, rising to 8.6% on M8 to A706.
Vehicle mix, 2025
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
HGV share of traffic
| Year | HGV share |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 10.3% |
| 2001 | 10.1% |
| 2002 | 9.6% |
| 2003 | 9.2% |
| 2004 | 9.4% |
| 2005 | 9.1% |
| 2006 | 9.0% |
| 2007 | 8.9% |
| 2008 | 9.6% |
| 2009 | 8.8% |
| 2010 | 9.3% |
| 2011 | 9.3% |
| 2012 | 9.1% |
| 2013 | 7.8% |
| 2014 | 7.7% |
| 2015 | 7.8% |
| 2016 | 7.9% |
| 2017 | 8.0% |
| 2018 | 7.6% |
| 2019 | 7.7% |
| 2020 | 8.9% |
| 2021 | 8.5% |
| 2022 | 8.1% |
| 2023 | 7.8% |
| 2024 | 7.6% |
| 2025 | 7.5% |
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
A801 traffic trend
Traffic on the A801 came to 42.3 million vehicle miles in 2025. At the count points present in both years, it is down 10.4% on 2019, before the pandemic, and down 11.1% on 2015.
Vehicle miles a year
Like for like, traffic is up 15.2% on 2000.
| Year | Vehicle miles |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 29m |
| 2001 | 29m |
| 2002 | 30m |
| 2003 | 31m |
| 2004 | 31m |
| 2005 | 31m |
| 2006 | 32m |
| 2007 | 34m |
| 2008 | 34m |
| 2009 | 35m |
| 2010 | 35m |
| 2011 | 35m |
| 2012 | 34m |
| 2013 | 36m |
| 2014 | 37m |
| 2015 | 38m |
| 2016 | 38m |
| 2017 | 39m |
| 2018 | 39m |
| 2019 | 47m |
| 2020 | 36m |
| 2021 | 38m |
| 2022 | 41m |
| 2023 | 41m |
| 2024 | 42m |
| 2025 | 42m |
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
Average daily flow
| Year | Vehicles a day |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 10,556 |
| 2001 | 10,611 |
| 2002 | 11,072 |
| 2003 | 11,336 |
| 2004 | 11,380 |
| 2005 | 11,416 |
| 2006 | 11,788 |
| 2007 | 12,266 |
| 2008 | 12,474 |
| 2009 | 12,746 |
| 2010 | 12,710 |
| 2011 | 12,820 |
| 2012 | 12,537 |
| 2013 | 13,058 |
| 2014 | 13,407 |
| 2015 | 13,695 |
| 2016 | 14,042 |
| 2017 | 14,206 |
| 2018 | 13,771 |
| 2019 | 13,898 |
| 2020 | 10,667 |
| 2021 | 11,064 |
| 2022 | 11,940 |
| 2023 | 12,162 |
| 2024 | 12,305 |
| 2025 | 12,458 |
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, 0 of the 8 count points were counted; DfT estimated the rest from earlier counts and local trends.
A801 collisions
Police recorded 31 collisions with the A801 as the first road from 2021 to 2025, 14 of them fatal or serious. That is 15.2 per 100 million vehicle miles, lower than the 31.5 for all A-roads in Great Britain. On average there were 0.7 a year for each mile of road.
Reported collisions by year
Down 44.4% from 2021 to 2025.
| Year | Collisions |
|---|---|
| 2021 | 9 |
| 2022 | 8 |
| 2023 | 5 |
| 2024 | 4 |
| 2025 | 5 |
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 |
|---|---|
| A706 to B805/B825 West Lothian, Falkirk · 11 collisions | 36.3 |
Source:DfT STATS19,UK Motoring analysis 2021 to 2025 Updated
A further 9 collisions were recorded at junctions where the A801 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 A801
In route order. Each is the highway authority DfT files the count points under.
- West Lothian
- Falkirk
Roadworks on the A801 in Scotland
The Scottish Road Works Register lists 10 sets of roadworks on the A801 in Scotland, 6 of them under way. 5 close the road, a lane or a slip road. From the extract of 16 September 2026.
-
A801 - B8047 To A706, Westfield
-
A801 - Pottishaw Roundabout To Boghead Roundabout, Blackburn
-
A801 - Pottishaw Roundabout To Boghead Roundabout, Blackburn
-
A801 - B8028 Dual To North Couston, Armadale
-
A801 - B8047 To A706, Westfield
-
A801 - Pottishaw Roundabout To Boghead Roundabout, Blackburn
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 | 8 count points in 2025 | 15 September 2026 |
| Reported collisions | Road safety open data (STATS19) Department for Transport Derived statistics UK Motoring | 2021 to 2025 | 31 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.