Road traffic bulk downloads
Bulk download traffic figures for all regions, all local authorities and all count point locations.
Data disclaimer
Traffic figures at the regional and national level are robust, and are reported as National Statistics. However, DfT’s traffic estimates for individual road links and small areas are less robust, as they are not always based on up-to-date counts made at these locations. Where other more up-to-date sources of traffic data are available (e.g. from local highways authorities), this may provide a more accurate estimate of traffic at these locations.
It is the responsibility of the user to decide which data are most appropriate for their purpose, and if DfT road link level traffic estimates are used, to make a note of the limitations in any published material.
Quality flags in data downloads
DfT’s road link level traffic estimates are calculated using a variety of methods, with some methods likely to produce more accurate estimates than others.
The data tables available to download here contain a column - estimation_method – showing the method used to estimate traffic for each location and year. Figures having an estimation method of “Counted” are likely to be more accurate than those marked as “Estimated”, and the latter should be used with caution.
Road traffic data guidance
This document provides guidance on the different datasets available to download for DfT traffic estimates:
Bulk downloads
Note: The local authority and regional downloads contain the unrounded data. When using this data, it should be presented as rounded to the nearest million vehicle miles.
| Link to data | Description | Format | Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Raw count data - major and minor roads | Vehicle counts recorded on major and minor roads. | ZIP | 2000 - 2023 |
| AADF Data - major and minor roads | Number of vehicles that travel past the count point (in both directions) on an average day of the year. | ZIP | 2000 - 2023 |
| AADF Data by direction - major roads | Number of vehicles that travel past the count point on an average day of the year, by direction of travel. | ZIP | 2000 - 2023 |
| Regional traffic: by vehicle type | Regional traffic figures give the total volume (vehicle miles) of traffic across each region for the whole year, for each vehicle type. | CSV | 1993 - 2023 |
| Regional traffic: by road type | Regional traffic figures give the total volume (vehicle miles) of traffic across each region for the whole year, for each road type. | CSV | 1993 - 2023 |
| Local authority traffic | Local authority traffic figures give the total volume (vehicle miles) of traffic across each local authority for the whole year. | CSV | 1993 - 2023 |
Supporting downloads
| Link to document | Description | Format |
|---|---|---|
| Major Roads Database - shape file format (2023) | Shape file of the major road network 2023. | ZIP |
| Major Roads Database - shape file format (2022) | Shape file of the major road network 2022. | ZIP |
| Major Roads Database - shape file format (2021) | Shape file of the major road network 2021. | ZIP |
| Major Roads Database - shape file format (2020) | Shape file of the major road network 2020. | ZIP |
| Major Roads Database - shape file format (2019) | Shape file of the major road network 2019. | ZIP |
| Major Roads Database - shape file format (2018) | Shape file of the major road network 2018. | ZIP |