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Campaigners warn Caithness roads are 'lethal' and will get worse as lockdown is eased


By Alan Hendry

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Iain Gregory says Caithness residents are entitled to the same standard of roads infrastructure as exists in other parts of the country. Picture: Mel Roger
Iain Gregory says Caithness residents are entitled to the same standard of roads infrastructure as exists in other parts of the country. Picture: Mel Roger

Caithness roads are in a "lethal" state and will only get worse as the easing of lockdown leads to more people travelling, local campaigners have warned.

Helen Campbell, of Caithness Roads Recovery, described the situation as "a serious accident waiting to happen". And her fellow campaigner Iain Gregory declared: "Can you imagine the uproar if the streets outside Highland Council HQ, Holyrood or Westminster were in the same condition as roads in our area?"

Mrs Campbell and Mr Gregory launched their campaign amid growing concern over the extent of potholes and crumbling carriageways in Caithness and north-west Sutherland.

"The priority in all of this is safety and at the moment our roads are far from safe – they are lethal," Mrs Campbell said this week.

"They are very stressful to drive, they are damaging our vehicles, and our county is becoming very concerned at how much quicker the roads will deteriorate once lockdown is eased – it's a serious accident waiting to happen."

Jamie Stone, the Liberal Democrat MP for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, responded to the group's calls and viewed some of the worst potholes in the east of the county during a visit with the party's Holyrood candidate, Molly Nolan. It is understood Mr Stone plans to come back to inspect some of the damage in the west of Caithness.

Mrs Campbell said: "There is most certainly money available to bring the roads up to safe, modern standards. I'm all for spending money on new and innovative projects that will take us into the future, but not at the expense of our lifelines, our livelihoods and our lives.

"I've recently heard the phrase 'spend to save' being used. I can think of nothing more important than spending to save lives, and I stressed this point to Jamie Stone. Safety is first – for everyone."

The campaigners have now secured a meeting with Highland Council chief executive Donna Manson and the executive chief officer for infrastructure and environment, Malcolm Macleod. They have also written directly to First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak, Secretary of State for Scotland Alister Jack and Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove seeking their intervention.

Highland Council has agreed to spend a further £20 million on "roads assets" over the next two financial years but Mr Gregory, a retired police area commander, says this is nowhere near enough.

"The situation in Caithness is now so bad that emergency funding must be provided as a matter of extreme urgency," he insisted. "The Highland Council position is that they 'have no money'. The £20 million allocated for the next two years – for the entire council area – is grossly insufficient, and probably amounts to about 10 per cent of the sums actually needed.

"We call upon the Scottish Government, and indeed Westminster, to take rapid steps to bring our roads network in Caithness up to a safe and acceptable standard."

Mr Gregory added: "Caithness matters. It is a major part of Scotland and of the UK. The residents of the county are entitled to enjoy the same high standard of roads infrastructure as exists in other parts of the country. We cannot and will not rest until this situation is rectified."

The campaigners say they will continue to press for action locally and nationally, with TV and radio coverage planned.


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