 It is a dual carriageway throughout, and in 2011 was "one of the busiest roads in Europe".In 2014 it had an annual average daily flow (AADF) of 39,309 vehicles, 3,425 of which were HGVs.In March 2015, improvement works were completed on the roundabout at Litherland to reduce congestion by separating through trunk road traffic from local traffic, at a cost of £3.4m.