The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Months of gridlock ahead for motorists
PERTH: Bertha Park link road works causing hour-long tailbacks
Motorists in Perth face months of traffic misery with one-mile journeys taking nearly an hour as a result of a major infrastructure project.
Ruthvenfield Road, one of only two ways in and out of the Inveralmond Industrial Estate, is to be closed for 10 weeks, creating gridlock at peak times.
The closure is part of a multi-million-pound project to build a roundabout accessing the new Bertha Park link road.
David Penker,w ho works on the estate, described the snarl-ups as a “potential disaster waiting to happen”.
“If there is an emergency situation in the industrial estate, emergency vehicles will struggle to get in and especially out,” he claimed.
A spokesperson for BEAR Scotland said: “We continue to work closely with Perth and Kinross Council to identify measures in minimising any delays for road users for the duration of the road closure.”
Perth and Kinross Council failed to respond to a request for comment.
Work on a multi-million-pound Perth roads project is causing traffic misery for motorists.
Ruthvenfield Road, one of only two ways in and out of the Inveralmond Industrial Estate, is to be closed for 10 weeks leaving motorists feeling “trapped”.
The industrial estate is home to a number of businesses including car showrooms and an arcade of supermarkets and other shops.
One of Perth’s major recycling facilities, the region’s main salt stock and the Double Dykes Traveller site are all accessed off Ruthvenfield Road.
Irate workers on the estate have reported being stuck in lengthy traffic jams and are calling for a swift solution.
“I left my office at 4.30pm to travel the one mile to Inveralmond roundabout and this took 50 minutes,” said David Penker who works on the estate.
“Frustrated drivers were driving the wrong way down carriageways to enter side roads.
“Why did one of the two access roads have to be closed and for such a lengthy period?
“I would ask that an alternative be found, with an access on the west side to be reinstated to Inveralmond Industrial Estate.”
Mr Penker said the delays not only impacted on those who work on the industrial estate, but could deter people from visiting the thriving retail park and could severely delay an emergency response.
The road closure is part of the £35 million A9/A85 junction improvement and link road to Bertha Park project on behalf of Perth and Kinross Council.
Much of the bypass is subject to a 50mph speed limit.
This involves the construction of a new A9 junction with slip roads, a new link road to Bertha Park and a new junction on the A85.
The road closure, which came into force on January 15, is to build a new roundabout on Ruthvenfield Road to give access to the Bertha Park link road.
A spokesperson for BEAR Scotland said: “We’re aware that the closure of Ruthvenfield Road as part of the Perth and Kinross Perth Futures Project has caused some delays at Inveralmond roundabout during peak times.
“We continue to work closely with Perth and Kinross Council to identify measures in minimising any delays for road users for the duration of the road closure.”
Perth and Kinross Council failed to respond to a request for comment. As Perth’s major out-of-town industrial estate, the local council has set great store in boosting the profile and use of Inveralmond.
The thriving mixture of shops and business units is burgeoning and attracting increasing numbers of workers and shoppers.
The ambition to open Perth’s western edge to such industry, not to mention thousands of houses and a new secondary school, is vital.
As such, local people have generally tolerated the long delays caused by bypass roadworks in recent months.
But the frustration of those being funnelled on to the already-busy Inveralmond roundabout is understandable.
Those with local know-how wishing to avoid the intersection have had their escape route cut off until nearly Easter.
It may be a chance for many to re-acquaint themselves with city centre businesses.