A-road
A981 traffic and collisions
The A981 is an A-road of 15.9 miles, in Aberdeenshire. This page covers its traffic at 6 DfT count points since 2000 and the collisions police recorded on it.
- Traffic in 2025 11m vehicle miles
- Average daily traffic 1,850 vehicles a day, both directions
- Busiest section 3,577 Boothby Rd to A90
- HGV share 3.9% of vehicle miles
- Traffic since 2019 −1.3% same count points
- Collisions, 2021 to 2025 6 4 fatal or serious
How busy is the A981?
On an average day in 2025, 1,850 vehicles passed each point on the A981, counting both directions. The busiest section is Boothby Rd to A90 (Aberdeenshire), with 3,577 a day; the quietest listed is A950 to B9093 High Street, with 1,235.
Busiest sections, 2025
Boothby Rd to A90 carries 1.9 times the road’s average flow.
| Section | Vehicles a day |
|---|---|
| Boothby Rd to A90 Aberdeenshire · 1.1 mi · HGVs 0.6% | 3,577 |
| B9032 to Boothby Rd, Fraserburgh Aberdeenshire · 2.1 mi · HGVs 0.9% | 2,864 |
| A948 to B9028/B9029 Aberdeenshire · 1.1 mi · HGVs 5.7% | 2,738 |
| B9093 High Street to B9032 Aberdeenshire · 5.2 mi · HGVs 3.9% | 1,595 |
| B9028/B9029 to A950 Aberdeenshire · 2.7 mi · HGVs 6.8% | 1,332 |
| A950 to B9093 High Street Aberdeenshire · 3.7 mi · HGVs 7.0% | 1,235 |
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
Route
In Aberdeenshire · 15.9 miles
A981 traffic and collisions by section
6 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 | A948 to B9028/B9029Aberdeenshire | 2,738 | 0 |
| 2 | B9028/B9029 to A950Aberdeenshire | 1,332 | fewer than 3 |
| 3 | A950 to B9093 High StreetAberdeenshire | 1,235 | 0 |
| 4 | B9093 High Street to B9032Aberdeenshire | 1,595 | fewer than 3 |
| 5 | B9032 to Boothby Rd, FraserburghAberdeenshire | 2,864 | fewer than 3 |
| 6 | Boothby Rd to A90Aberdeenshire | 3,577 | 0 |
Vehicles a day is the average daily flow in 2025. “Since 2019” compares the same count points. Collisions are those with the A981 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.
A981 traffic by vehicle type
Cars and taxis make up 71.2% of the vehicle miles on the A981. HGVs account for 3.9%, rising to 7.0% on A950 to B9093 High Street.
Vehicle mix, 2025
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
HGV share of traffic
| Year | HGV share |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 5.6% |
| 2001 | 5.5% |
| 2002 | 5.3% |
| 2003 | 4.9% |
| 2004 | 5.1% |
| 2005 | 5.3% |
| 2006 | 5.3% |
| 2007 | 5.8% |
| 2008 | 5.9% |
| 2009 | 5.8% |
| 2010 | 6.1% |
| 2011 | 5.4% |
| 2012 | 4.8% |
| 2013 | 4.7% |
| 2014 | 4.8% |
| 2015 | 5.0% |
| 2016 | 5.0% |
| 2017 | 5.1% |
| 2018 | 5.1% |
| 2019 | 4.6% |
| 2020 | 5.4% |
| 2021 | 4.4% |
| 2022 | 4.2% |
| 2023 | 4.0% |
| 2024 | 3.9% |
| 2025 | 3.9% |
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
A981 traffic trend
Traffic on the A981 came to 10.7 million vehicle miles in 2025. At the count points present in both years, it is down 1.3% on 2019, before the pandemic, and up 2.4% on 2015.
Vehicle miles a year
Like for like, traffic is up 30.2% on 2000.
| Year | Vehicle miles |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 8.1m |
| 2001 | 8.2m |
| 2002 | 8.5m |
| 2003 | 8.8m |
| 2004 | 9.2m |
| 2005 | 9.3m |
| 2006 | 9.5m |
| 2007 | 9.6m |
| 2008 | 9.6m |
| 2009 | 9.8m |
| 2010 | 10m |
| 2011 | 9.9m |
| 2012 | 9.7m |
| 2013 | 9.8m |
| 2014 | 10m |
| 2015 | 10m |
| 2016 | 11m |
| 2017 | 11m |
| 2018 | 11m |
| 2019 | 11m |
| 2020 | 8.3m |
| 2021 | 9.5m |
| 2022 | 10m |
| 2023 | 11m |
| 2024 | 11m |
| 2025 | 11m |
Source:DfT,UK Motoring analysis 2000 to 2025 Updated
Average daily flow
| Year | Vehicles a day |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 1,407 |
| 2001 | 1,415 |
| 2002 | 1,467 |
| 2003 | 1,531 |
| 2004 | 1,590 |
| 2005 | 1,605 |
| 2006 | 1,643 |
| 2007 | 1,668 |
| 2008 | 1,666 |
| 2009 | 1,698 |
| 2010 | 1,763 |
| 2011 | 1,712 |
| 2012 | 1,681 |
| 2013 | 1,704 |
| 2014 | 1,750 |
| 2015 | 1,796 |
| 2016 | 1,840 |
| 2017 | 1,858 |
| 2018 | 1,878 |
| 2019 | 1,875 |
| 2020 | 1,432 |
| 2021 | 1,641 |
| 2022 | 1,771 |
| 2023 | 1,807 |
| 2024 | 1,830 |
| 2025 | 1,850 |
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 6 count points were counted; DfT estimated the rest from earlier counts and local trends.
A981 collisions
Police recorded 6 collisions with the A981 as the first road from 2021 to 2025, 4 of them fatal or serious.
Reported collisions by year
| Year | Collisions | Fatal or serious |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | fewer than 3 | fewer than 3 |
| 2023 | 0 | 0 |
| 2024 | 3 | fewer than 3 |
| 2025 | fewer than 3 | fewer than 3 |
Source:DfT STATS19,UK Motoring analysis 2021 to 2025 Updated
Fatal or serious uses DfT’s adjusted serious figures. How we count collisions
Council areas on the A981
In route order. Each is the highway authority DfT files the count points under.
- Aberdeenshire
Roadworks on the A981 in Scotland
The Scottish Road Works Register lists 3 sets of roadworks on the A981 in Scotland, 0 of them under way. From the extract of 16 September 2026.
-
A981 U133b Near Wellbank North East To Bridge Street Strichen
-
A981 C104b At Shevado North East To A950 Near Wellhowe, Brucklay
-
A981 B9032 At Memsie North East To U14b Near Broomhead
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 | 6 count points in 2025 | 15 September 2026 |
| Reported collisions | Road safety open data (STATS19) Department for Transport Derived statistics UK Motoring | 2021 to 2025 | 6 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.