Call to review myriad of speed limits
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‘Traffic speeds are a regular concern for community councils. A factor influencing the review must be the planned speed limit reductions from 30mph to 20mph that the Highland Council will shortly be implementing on council roads.
‘In some locations a stepdown from 40mph to 20mph on the side road would seem odd and therefore less likely to be respected.’
The joint action by Ms Forbes, SNP constituency MSP for Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch, and Mr Cameron, Conservative Highlands and Islands MSP, comes as recently published figures from the Scottish Government show fatalities have increased on the A82, which runs from Glasgow to Inverness, via Fort William, over the past five years.
From 2015-19, 27 people lost their lives on the A82 – an increase of four over the previous five years (2010-14), with last year (2019) alone witnessing seven deaths. Over the last decade, 50 people have died as a result of accidents on the A82.
MSP Kate Forbes, who has linked up with fellow MSP Donald Cameron to request a review of the different speed limits in and around Fort William.
The A830 running from Fort William to Mallaig witnessed three deaths in the last five years, with a total of six over the last decade, with two of those fatalities occurring last year (2019).
Over the past decade the A9 was Scotland’s deadliest trunk road with 74 fatalities – although there has been a drop in the numbers – but the A82 is now not far behind.
Ms Forbes, who recently published a consultation seeking targeted improvements to the A82, said: ‘Every death is a tragedy and these figures remind us that Highland roads continue to claim so many lives.
‘The A9 continues to be the deadliest road, but the fall in the numbers is something that should be carefully studied to learn how we can make it even safer. Both the average speed cameras and the dualling will make a big difference.
‘The A82 is not far behind. Every accident and fatality is a cause for grief. I am determined to do all we can to improve safety on the A82.’