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CrashStats

A56 accidents: crash map and statistics

Police recorded 20,740 collisions on the A56 from 1979 to 2025, with 28,342 casualties. Of those crashes, 327 were fatal and 2,908 serious, and 344 people were killed.

In 2025 there were 142 collisions on the A56, up 12% from 127 in 2024, with 191 casualties.

Live A56 closures, incidents and roadworks are checked every 5 minutes.

Collisions since 1979
20,740
31st highest of 4,923 roads
Casualties
28,342
1.37 per collision
Fatal collisions
327
344 people killed
Serious collisions
2,908
3,354 seriously injured
Collisions in 2025
142
Up 12% on 2024
Casualties in 2025
191
Up 7% on 2024

Crash severity on the A56

On the A56, 1.6% of collisions were fatal and 14% serious, against 1.6% and 18% across Great Britain.

Collisions by severity, 1979 to 2025

  • Fatal3271.6%
  • Serious2,90814%
  • Slight17,50584%

Where the A56 ranks among 4,923 roads

Most collisions
31st
Most casualties
32nd
Most fatal collisions
50th
Most serious collisions
43rd

A56 accidents by year

Collisions on the A56 peaked at 706 in 1982 and were down to 142 in 2025.

Collisions and casualties on the A56, 1979 to 2025

  • Collisions
  • Collisions in 2025: 142
  • Casualties

Source: Department for Transport, STATS19 road safety data

View as a table
YearCollisionsCasualties
2025142191
2024127178
2023146190
2022145172
2021143192
2020127166
2019199247
2018208287
2017209265
2016218297
2015218294
2014228332
2013221307
2012275376
2011292411
2010317486
2009388559
2008389531
2007388572
2006451641
2005441647
2004529766
2003490691
2002518744
2001537749
2000538798
1999550791
1998598854
1997586876
1996541758
1995537784
1994620867
1993547745
1992608850
1991610865
1990638834
1989611812
1988608791
1987571775
1986604787
1985636786
1984671806
1983704898
1982706863
1981663884
1980605770
1979642857

When crashes happen on the A56

Friday has the most collisions on the A56 (3,434), and 3pm to 6pm is the busiest time of day (5,142).

Collisions by day of the week

  • Monday3,026 (15%)
  • Tuesday2,888 (14%)
  • Wednesday3,111 (15%)
  • Thursday3,226 (16%)
  • Friday3,434 (17%)
  • Saturday2,877 (14%)
  • Sunday2,178 (11%)

Collisions by time of day

  • Midnight to 3am818 (3.9%)
  • 3am to 6am321 (1.5%)
  • 6am to 9am2,505 (12%)
  • 9am to noon2,954 (14%)
  • Noon to 3pm3,887 (19%)
  • 3pm to 6pm5,142 (25%)
  • 6pm to 9pm3,045 (15%)
  • 9pm to midnight2,068 (10%)

Collisions by month

  • January1,760 (8.5%)
  • February1,457 (7%)
  • March1,642 (7.9%)
  • April1,625 (7.8%)
  • May1,745 (8.4%)
  • June1,653 (8%)
  • July1,635 (7.9%)
  • August1,643 (7.9%)
  • September1,751 (8.4%)
  • October1,934 (9.3%)
  • November1,979 (9.5%)
  • December1,916 (9.2%)

Light conditions at the time

  • Daylight14,614 (70%)
  • Dark, street lights lit5,529 (27%)
  • Dark, no street lighting270 (1.3%)
  • Dark, street lights unlit181 (0.9%)
  • Dark, lighting unknown146 (0.7%)

Source: Department for Transport, STATS19 road safety data

Road and weather conditions in A56 crashes

On the A56, 75% of collisions happened where the speed limit was 30 mph and 60% on a dry road surface.

Speed limit at the scene

  • 20 mph24 (0.1%)
  • 30 mph15,647 (75%)
  • 40 mph1,755 (8.5%)
  • 50 mph269 (1.3%)
  • 60 mph1,682 (8.1%)
  • 70 mph1,361 (6.6%)
  • Not recorded2 (under 0.1%)

Weather at the time

  • Fine, no high winds15,836 (76%)
  • Raining, no high winds3,420 (16%)
  • Raining with high winds367 (1.8%)
  • Fine with high winds328 (1.6%)
  • Other561 (2.7%)
  • Not recorded228 (1.1%)

Road surface

  • Dry12,395 (60%)
  • Wet or damp7,909 (38%)
  • Frost or ice280 (1.4%)
  • Snow106 (0.5%)
  • Other34 (0.2%)
  • Not recorded16 (0.1%)

Type of road

  • Single carriageway13,907 (67%)
  • Dual carriageway5,460 (26%)
  • Roundabout914 (4.4%)
  • One way street or slip road239 (1.2%)
  • Not recorded220 (1.1%)

Source: Department for Transport, STATS19 road safety data

People hurt and vehicles involved in A56 crashes

Car occupants make up 60% of the people killed or injured on the A56, followed by pedestrians (15%).

Casualties by road user

  • Car occupant16,962 (60%)
  • Pedestrian4,359 (15%)
  • Motorcyclist2,745 (9.7%)
  • Cyclist2,100 (7.4%)
  • Bus or coach occupant694 (2.4%)
  • Van occupant660 (2.3%)
  • Other821 (2.9%)
  • Not recorded1 (under 0.1%)

Vehicles involved

  • Car28,424 (74%)
  • Motorcycle2,810 (7.3%)
  • Pedal cycle2,170 (5.6%)
  • Van or goods vehicle up to 3.5 tonnes1,852 (4.8%)
  • Goods vehicle over 3.5 tonnes1,229 (3.2%)
  • Bus or coach939 (2.4%)
  • Other1,015 (2.6%)
  • Not recorded5 (under 0.1%)

Casualties by age

  • 0 to 5491 (1.7%)
  • 6 to 10822 (2.9%)
  • 11 to 151,451 (5.1%)
  • 16 to 204,662 (16%)
  • 21 to 253,989 (14%)
  • 26 to 355,982 (21%)
  • 36 to 454,160 (15%)
  • 46 to 552,904 (10%)
  • 56 to 651,909 (6.7%)
  • 66 to 751,157 (4.1%)
  • Over 75780 (2.8%)
  • Not recorded35 (0.1%)

Drivers, passengers and pedestrians

  • Driver or rider16,441 (58%)
  • Passenger7,542 (27%)
  • Pedestrian4,359 (15%)

Source: Department for Transport, STATS19 road safety data

Map of recent crashes on the A56

Map of the 25 most recent crashes on the A56

Use the arrow keys to move the map and the plus and minus keys to zoom.

  • 25 crashes
  • Serious
  • Slight

A56 crashes by council area

Collisions on the A56 were recorded in 14 council areas. Trafford has the most, with 4,942, followed by Bury (4,620) and Manchester (2,288).

Collisions on the A56 in each area, 1979 to 2025
RankAreaCollisionsCasualtiesFatalSerious
1stTrafford4,9426,71380579
2ndBury4,6206,27348534
3rdManchester2,2882,96425261
4thCheshire West and Chester2,2543,07242311
5thPendle2,0392,68040416
6thRossendale1,0391,58924171
7thWarrington1,0321,48716195
8thSalford7379671099
9thBurnley5777498104
10thHalton5037281088
11thCheshire East2673821045
12thHyndburn205338742
13thNorth Yorkshire160283445
14thRibble Valley4370216

A56 crashes by town

Collisions on the A56 were recorded in 27 towns and built-up areas, led by Manchester (2,040) and Bury, Bury (1,953).

Recent crashes on the A56

These are the 25 most recent collisions on the A56, from 10 November to 30 December 2025.

Severity