Birnam and Dunkeld Junctions Action Group

On Wednesday 8th November Fiona Hyslop, the Transport Minister and representatives of Transport Scotland met with the BAD Junctions Action Group and the A9 Community Group to discuss Improving safety at the eight local junctions with the A9 and the dualling of the A9.
The Junctions Action Group went first and highlighted the background to the campaign which has focused on the safety for all users of the A9 as they travel on the 4.6 miles of single carriageway road with 8 difficult junctions through our local communities.
Our six requests to improve safety at the Dunkeld and Birnam Junctions with the A9:
• Improved signing at the end the dual carriageway heading north before Pass of Birnam as the new signs do not give warnings of the junctions ahead with turning and crossing traffic.
• Upgrade road markings and hatching, consideration of double white line areas (no overtaking) on the single carriageway section especially between the end of the dual carriageway going north and the Birnam junction and up to the Jubilee Bridge.
• Improved lighting at junction, including better lit bollards
• Speed restrictions between the end of the carriageway going north and south to the Jubilee Bridge
• Cameras to assess the junction activity, ahead of dualling
• Serious consideration of a roundabout as an interim and potential long-term option at the Dunkeld Junction. Widening the left turn exit and creating a slipway as well as a midpoint holding area may improve safety in the short term.
Why are we asking for these improvements?
There are frequent delays at these junctions leading to frustration, anger, stress and anxiety. This can cause accidents or near misses, often with damage to people and vehicles. Many drivers try to find ways of avoiding these junctions and diversions after accidents lead to longer journey times and frustration and more upsets. In addition, local school children, postal workers, bus drivers, farmers and visitors face daily problems and experience risky situations. The A9 splits our local communities and unfortunately there have been 3 deaths in the last two years on this stretch.
The initial announcement about the dualling of the A9 was in 2008, when the Scottish Government said improving the A9 was a priority. In 2011, the Scottish Government committed to dualling the A9 between Inverness and Perth by 2025. There was a public meeting in 2012 about the dualling of the section around Dunkeld and Birnam section with a definite completion date of 2025. Since then, two sections of the A9 have been dualled totalling 10.6 miles. We have no idea when this section will be dualled and it is now last in the queue as it is the only section without an approved route. We are therefore very concerned, with increasing traffic, these local junctions will become even more unsafe and a major source of stress, anxiety and delay for all A9 road users.
What the Minister said:
Fiona Hyslop, the Minister Transport listened and took note of the points we made. She appeared to understand our concerns and the detail of our requests. She explained the process for making decisions about safety and explained the need for value for money in the present circumstances. She has asked Transport Scotland to look again at some of the points we made and pointed out what has been done. She then said she was going, after the meeting, to a meeting about A9 road safety and was concerned about the lack of community representation on that group.
What next:
We await with interest the responses from Transport Scotland and the Minister. In the meantime, we continue with our campaign and car stickers highlighting the safety campaign are available form Kettles of Dunkeld. If you witness any accidents or near misses, please report them to us as we need to document these. In addition, if anyone has experience of risk assessments for roads or is a civil/road engineer and is willing to help us, please get in touch.
We will keep you informed of any progress and thank you again for your support.
Pam Green - pammgreen@btinternet.com
David Bee

Photo credit: Lyn Massey

Birnam and Dunkeld Junctions Action Group - Update

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