Length of motorways and e-roads in United Kingdom

United Kingdom: Length of motorways and e-roads was 3,865 in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
3,865
Change on year
up 0.0%
World rank
5th
of 54 countries
All-time high
3,865
in 2024
All-time low
1,133
in 1970
Years of data
46
1970–2024

Length of motorways and e-roads in United Kingdom, 1970–2024

1.0k2.0k3.0k4.0k197019972024

Source: Eurostat.

Analysis

The most recent figure for length of motorways and e-roads in United Kingdom is 3,865, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 46 years on record.

That represents a change of up 2.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, length of motorways and e-roads in United Kingdom peaked at 3,865 in 2024 and was at its lowest, 1,133, in 1970.

United Kingdom ranks 5th of 54 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 46 years of available data.

Length of motorways and e-roads in United Kingdom, year by year

Annual values for Length of motorways and e-roads in United Kingdom, 1970 to 2024.
Year Value Change
1970 1,133 —
1975 2,082 +83.8%
1979 2,578 +23.8%
1980 2,694 +4.5%
1981 2,748 +2.0%
1982 2,765 +0.6%
1983 2,822 +2.1%
1984 2,895 +2.6%
1985 2,951 +1.9%
1986 3,038 +2.9%
1987 3,092 +1.8%
1988 3,104 +0.4%
1989 3,093 -0.4%
1990 3,181 +2.8%
1991 3,211 +0.9%
1992 3,246 +1.1%
1993 3,324 +2.4%
1994 3,360 +1.1%
1995 3,380 +0.6%
1996 3,408 +0.8%
1997 3,491 +2.4%
1998 3,535 +1.3%
1999 3,564 +0.8%
2000 3,581 +0.5%
2001 3,591 +0.3%
2002 3,592 +0.0%
2003 3,592 +0.0%
2004 3,638 +1.3%
2005 3,633 -0.1%
2006 3,670 +1.0%
2007 3,674 +0.1%
2008 3,673 -0.0%
2009 3,674 +0.0%
2010 3,672 -0.1%
2011 3,686 +0.4%
2012 3,733 +1.3%
2013 3,756 +0.6%
2014 3,760 +0.1%
2015 3,768 +0.2%
2016 3,764 -0.1%
2017 3,803 +1.0%
2018 3,838 +0.9%
2021 3,851 +0.3%
2022 3,859 +0.2%
2023 3,864 +0.1%
2024 3,865 +0.0%

United Kingdom compared with similar countries

  • United Kingdom's 3,865 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 995, 3.9× the median. (39 countries reporting)
  • United Kingdom's 3,865 is above the median for high income countries, which is 1,357, 2.8× the median. (32 countries reporting)

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Length of motorways and e-roads in United Kingdom changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.

YearChange FromTo
1975 +83.8% 1,133 2,082

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 1,931 1,133 2,578 3
1980s 2,920 2,694 3,104 10
1990s 3,370 3,181 3,564 10
2000s 3,632 3,581 3,674 10
2010s 3,753 3,672 3,838 9
2020s 3,860 3,851 3,865 4

Countries ranked near United Kingdom

  1. 2 Germany 13,210 compare
  2. 3 France 11,751 compare
  3. 4 Italy 7,561 compare
  4. 5 United Kingdom 3,865 compare
  5. 7 Türkiye 3,796 compare
  6. 8 Portugal 3,113 compare

See the full ranking of 55 places →

More reference data data for United Kingdom

All data for United Kingdom →

Frequently asked questions

What is length of motorways and e-roads in United Kingdom?
Length of motorways and e-roads in United Kingdom was 3,865 in 2024, according to Eurostat.
What is the highest length of motorways and e-roads recorded in United Kingdom?
The highest recorded value was 3,865 in 2024.
What is the lowest length of motorways and e-roads recorded in United Kingdom?
The lowest recorded value was 1,133 in 1970.
How does United Kingdom rank for length of motorways and e-roads?
United Kingdom ranks 5th out of 54 countries with data for 2024.
Is length of motorways and e-roads rising or falling in United Kingdom?
Over the last ten years it is up 2.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this United Kingdom data come from?
The figures come from Eurostat, published as part of Length of motorways and e-roads. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Length of motorways and e-roads in United Kingdom. Statizoid, drawing on Eurostat. Retrieved 13 November 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/length-of-motorways-and-e-roads/united-kingdom/

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About this data

Indicator
Length of motorways and e-roads
Source
Eurostat
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Eurostat)
Coverage
55 places, 2,703 data points, 1963–2024
Last refreshed