Potentially life-saving upgrades to the Swallow Roundabout are on hold due to a lack of “clarity” over land ownership close to the junction.
Western Gateway housing developer Springfield Properties was supposed to have completed work on the junction on the Dundee and Perthshire border after building 270 homes in the nearby development.
The upgrades, including traffic lights, remain on ice due to a lack of “clarity on ownership of the land.”
Safety concerns surrounding traffic on, and approaching, the multi-lane junction resurfaced last week after an accident on the eastbound A90 near Invergowrie, the latest in a series of crashes which can see the road blocked for hours at a time.
The Courier understands the negotiations centre on a piece of land to the north of the roundabout.
The land is listed on the Dundee City Council website as belonging to the “Residue of Invergowrie Estate = Trustees of Christopher Clayhills Henderson Lifevent Trust.”
A Dundee City Council spokesman said: “We are aware of the ongoing issue at the Swallow Roundabout and note that the developer is discussing the matter with the land owner.
“The council is working to ensure that the roundabout improvement works are undertaken at the appropriate time in the course of the ongoing development at Western Gateway.”
Springfield Properties made an appeal in December to increase the number of homes it had built before starting the work from 270 to 370.
A Transport Scotland spokesman said: “We understand discussions are progressing between Springfield Properties and landowners in order to secure the delivery of the improvements at Swallow Roundabout.
“The will be no decision on the request for deferment in the works at Swallow Roundabout until there is clarity on ownership of the land,” he added.
Springfield Properties central managing director, Peter Matthews, said the company were fully committed to upgrading the roundabout.
“This includes the implementation of a new traffic light system,” he said.
“Projects on key routes, such as the A90, can take time to set up and involve multiple authorities, services and companies.
“We are working as quickly as possible to reach a point where we can start work on site, which we hope will be in the near future.”
Auchterhouse commuter Hazel Murie said the upgrades were needed urgently.
“It will likely take fatalities to get action taken,” she said.
“I have contacted local, Scottish and UK representatives but it seems nobody can actually get this vital project moved off the page to becoming a reality.”
Nobody from the trust could be contacted before deadline.
