North road investment plea as figures show rate of serious or fatal accidents
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Local MP Jamie Stone has warned that too many people are still falling victim to death or serious injury on Scotland’s roads while not enough investment has come to the north.
He was speaking after figures revealed there had been 785 serious or fatal accidents on Scotland’s trunk road network between January 2017 and summer 2019.
During that time there were 69 serious or fatal accidents on the A9, defined as stretching from Falkirk to Thurso.
The figures were provided by the Scottish Government to the Scottish Liberal Democrats. They show that trunk roads taking people to the Highlands and the north-east, including the A82 and A90 as well as the A9, saw the most accidents in which someone was injured or killed.
Mr Stone, the Lib Dem MP for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, said: “With our tourist industry reopening, thousands of people will be planning their trips to see more of our beautiful country. After a really tough few months, I know how much businesses in Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross are looking forward to welcoming them.
“I have been on about the dreadful and dangerous state of our roads ever since I was elected to Holyrood in 1999. It’s a hugely personal issue for me.
“As I told the Scottish Parliament in 2005, I lost a friend who I worked with in Nigg who died due to an accident on the A9. That was 15 years ago and for many areas not enough has changed.
“Unfortunately, as these figures show, too many people are still falling victim to death or serious injury on Scotland’s roads.
“The Scottish Government must take responsibility for this alarming situation. The very least we can do for the families of those who have died is sort out our roads.
"Lots of investment has been ploughed into roads in the south of Scotland, but next to none has made its way to the far north. With the North Coast 500 already seeing a spike in traffic, it is really crucial that the SNP finally delivers on its promise to improve road safety."
During the 30-month period there were 137 accidents where at least one person lost their life.
A Transport Scotland spokesperson said: “Scotland compares well with the road safety record of the rest of the UK and many other countries. This provides no comfort to the friends and family of those who have sadly lost their lives and we want to do more. Information on accidents is used to ensure action and investment is targeted to the areas that need it most.
“We remain committed to working with our road safety partners to deliver a co-ordinated approach to road safety to secure the ultimate vision established in Scotland’s Road Safety Framework to 2020 and beyond, where no-one is killed on our roads.”
Top 10 roads for serious or fatal accidents
The figures show that the top 10 roads in Scotland by number of serious or fatal accidents (2017 to summer 2019) were:
1 A82 (Glasgow to Inverness via Fort William) – 73
2 A9 (Falkirk to Thurso) – 69
3 A90 (Edinburgh to Fraserburgh via Dundee and Aberdeen) – 59
4 A77 (Glasgow to Portpatrick) – 40
5 A96 (Aberdeen to Inverness) – 39
6 M8 (Edinburgh to Glasgow) – 35
7 M74 (A74(M)) (Gretna to Glasgow) – 35
8 A85 (Perth to Oban) – 33
9 A92 (Dunfermline to Aberdeen) – 33
10 A83 (Argyll) – 28
