Charity has £28k deficit

THE charity behind the legal challenge to prevent the new Madras College being built on green belt land is almost £28,000 in the red.

Accounts for St Andrews Environmental Protection Association Limited (Stepal) show the black hole, which the company insists will be bridged this year.

It took its fight against the decision to locate the new school at Pipeland to the Court of Session, resulting in the quashing of planning consent for the site.

Fife Council now hopes to construct t he l ongawaited £50 million school at Langlands, as part of the St Andrews West expansion.

Stepal reported a deficit of £27,796 in its report and financial statements for the year to June 2016.

Almost £51,000 was spent on legal and professional fees during the year.

However, directors said they expected the deficit to be reversed before the end of June by supporters’ donations, gift aid and the court-decreed refund of legal fees.

Footage which emerged online shows the cyclist travelling on the wrong side of the B945 in North-East Fife, a few miles south of the Tay Road Bridge, apparently unfazed by oncoming traffic.

The video shows the cyclist, thought to be female, riding head-on towards a van — which is forced to swerve and misses her by inches — to the horror of onlookers who captured the encounter on their dashcam.

An occupant of the car carrying the camera can be heard saying: “Get

A CYCLIST has been criticised for putting road users at risk by pedalling directly into the path of oncoming traffic.

Sandy Allan and Duncan Dollimore. on the other side. That is a death wish.”

Tay Bridgehead councillor Tim Brett said the cyclist was “irresponsible”, adding that he hoped the witnesses had contacted the police.

He said: “The B945 is a very busy road, as the main road i nto St Andrews, so there’s a lot of traffic.

“The speed limit has been reduced on roads in the area, particularly around Drumoig, to 40mph and 50mph in some stretches.

“I hope the police were contacted because that is totally irresponsible of the individual — who knows why they were doing it?

“I completely share the concerns of those who have spoken out.”

The cyclist’s behaviour was criticised by Duncan Dollimore, senior road safety officer with cycling organisation Cycling UK.

He said: “While it is unclear how the woman cycling found herself in such a position, in her own interest and that of the other road users, she should not have been cycling on the wrong side of the road.

“Her actions put not just herself at risk, but also — as the footage shows — others.

“Cycling UK encourages all road users — whether driving or cycling — to behave sensibly and most importantly safely on our roads without taking risks like this.”

Sandy Allan, road safety manager at the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents Scotland, said the video showed the unpredictability of driving on country roads.

He told the Tele: “The Highway Code is a set of rules for the road intended to keep us safe and applies to all users.

“We should be aware of these and respect them regardless of the circumstances and personal perspective.

“Other road users anticipate certain courses of action.

“This particular incident emphasises how driving on country roads can be unpredictable no matter how well you know a particular stretch.

“You never know what might be around the corner.”