Transport Scotland is being urged to “fast track” proposals to install a roundabout at an accident blackspot.
The A952 Cortes junction, on the A90 Aberdeen to Fraserburgh road, is often the scene of accidents – including one just last week.
Now North East Conservative MSP Liam Kerr is pushing for action to finally replace the junction with a roundabout to improve safety.
His party have backed proposals to install a roundabout at Cortes as well as introducing “2+1 lanes” further north to Peterhead and Fraserburgh to enable safer overtaking.
The plans are included in the Nestrans regional transport strategy and are currently being considered as part of Transport Scotland’s strategy transport projects review.
Mr Kerr said it is “absolutely horrifying” to see the number of crashes which occur at the Cortes junction on a “regular basis”.
Mr Kerr was joined by Fraserburgh council candidate James Adams and Central Buchan hopefuls Hannah Powell and Steve Owen when he visited the blackspot this week. While there, they saw the debris from last week’s two-car crash still on the roadside.
He said: “On our visit, it was concerning to see the debris of yet another collision on the road.
“These spates of accidents highlight how vital it is to get spades into the ground and work started because lives are being put at risk with the junction in its current state.
“This is exactly why we are calling on Transport Scotland to fast track plans to replace the junction with a roundabout to alleviate the devastation that we are constantly seeing at Cortes.”
Poor road markings adds to danger of ‘horrendous junction’
Mr Adams said he hoped recent work to resurface the road would improve safety, particularly at night, but said the speed of traffic pulling out of the junction was “alarming.”
Mr Owen, another candidate for Central Buchan explained: “The road has multiple sections of poor white lines and ineffective cats’ eyes which adds to the danger of this horrendous junction.”
Ms Powell echoed his thoughts and said: “Thankfully no one was seriously hurt (in last week’s crash) but it’s clear upgrades like a roundabout is urgently needed.”
In response, a Transport Scotland spokesman said: “Road safety remains of paramount importance to the Scottish Government. Consideration of further safety improvements at the A90/A952 Cortes junction can be undertaken as part of our Strategic Transport Projects Review process.
“We continue to make the most of our current infrastructure assets and the budget includes over £855 million in motorways and trunk roads spending – focused on critical safety maintenance of our trunk road network.
“The north east has recently benefitted from roads investment. The £49.5 million A92/A96 Haudagain Improvement Project will deliver benefits for the local community and road users by reducing congestion, improving journey time reliability as well as providing a safer route for pedestrians and cyclists.
“The £745 million investment in the AWPR/B-T project is making journeys into Aberdeen a safer and more enjoyable experience by enabling flee-flowing traffic, which generates lower carbon emissions and by taking slow-moving traffic away from city streets improving air quality for some 75,000 homes.”
