A Perthshire man has made a plea to the Scottish Government to consider installing a temporary roundabout while work is carried out on dualling the A9.
Hamish Carlton, who lives at Little Dunkeld, near the junction of the A9/A822 road from Amulree to Dunkeld, believes that the measure at the Dunkeld junction could save lives.
His concern is over traffic queuing trying to access or cross the A9.
“Just imagine what this is like when we have Etape, the Game Fair, the Blair Horse Trials, Highland Games, or a bank holiday,” said Mr Carlton.
“The decision to dual the A9 is welcomed but, in the interim, something has to be done to alleviate this kind of situation and the frustration which builds up of motorists trying to dash into oncoming traffic, not appreciating that speeds of 70 to 80mph are approaching.
“We had a three-car crash only last week fortunately, with no fatalities. What is urgently needed in the interim, is a temporary roundabout at this junction.
“The success of this type of measure was amply demonstrated during the construction of the Ballinliug overbridge. The red and white bollards were excellent, easily put in place, and at low cost.
“As far as I am aware, there were no accidents there, or any delays to traffic on the A9. There is ample room for a similar resolution at the Dunkeld junction.”
A Scottish Government spokesman said safety was of paramount importance to them, but that they were not convinced by the need for a roundabout.
“The dualling of the A9 has been talked about for at least a generation, but we are the first administration committed to making the road dual carriageway all the way from Perth to Inverness a reality,” said the spokesman.
“Make no mistake, this is one of the top transport infrastructure projects in the country and we have already spent around £50 million pounds to improve safety on the A9 since 2007, including £14 million for Crubenmore dualling, which has improved safety and journey times by doubling the length of the dual carriageway.
“We are determined that A9 motorists should see improvements on the route as soon as possible. We are now inviting bidders for three major design contracts for the route, and we will look for any opportunity to bring work forward.
“Development is under way for design of three dualling schemes which will improve safety of 28km of existing single carriage route Luncarty to Pass of Birnam; the Birnam to Tay Crossing; and Kincraig to Dalraddy.
“In the short term, we have asked the A9 Safety Group to look at improved consistency of signing and lining; improved geometry and safety barrier works; variable messaging signs displaying journey times; and the possibility of introducing average speed cameras many of these measures have already been introduced.
“Road casualties in Scotland are at their lowest level since records began, but there is clearly much work still to be done.”
He said the possibility of a roundabout at the northern junction with Dunkeld as part of the existing single carriageway A9 had previously been discussed with Dunkeld and Birnam Community Council.
The modelling work they undertook at that time suggested that a roundabout at this location could lead to queueing traffic on the A9 where none currently exists, he said.
In addition, a roundabout at this location would be the only physical obstruction on the route between Perth and Inverness and would, therefore, be out of character.
Their analysis of road safety statistics had not identified this junction as one requiring further investigation for prioritised safety improvements and the annual assessment of this section of the A9 suggests that its accident rate is consistent with the average for all trunk roads, he added.