Another crash at an Inverness accident blackspot has renewed calls for a fresh revamp of the junction.
A woman had to be cut free from her vehicle following a collision at the junction of Tower Road and Culloden Road on Friday.
The road has already been identified by Highland Council as one that needs to be improved.
But Inverness South councillor Ken Gowans is asking for immediate action to fix the issue before anyone else gets hurt.
Mr Gowans, who had an accident at the same spot in 2017, has been calling for change there for seven years.
‘The junction has always been problematic’
He said: “There have been a whole series of minor, and some not so minor, crashes.
“The junction has always been problematic.
“At the other end of the road, where it meets Barn Church Road, there has been extensive work done to make that much safer.
“That is what we need here.”
Those measures at Barn Church Road came about after years of complaints about the junction there.
The council is developing what it’s calling a “wider road safety scheme” and funding has been secured.
A spokesman added: “Plans, which include proposed signalisation of the B9006/Tower Road junction, are currently being designed and will be presented to members shortly.”
Why has this become an accident blackspot?
Mr Gowans said a number of factors make the junction unsafe. But low sunlight during winter is the biggest issue.
“The road layout can be quite confusing,” he added.
“The sight lines are not ideal for that kind of busy junction, and it is getting busier because of the amount of traffic from the building that is going on in the area.
“One of the key or unique adverse properties of this junction, especially coming up to this time of year, is the winter sun, both in the morning and around 3pm.
“The sun shines directly down Tower Road and if you are waiting to turn left or right, you cannot see.
“This has been the cause of a number of accidents.”
‘Enough is enough’
To avoid the problem, some locals have taken to bypassing it altogether and heading through Caulfield Road instead.
The cost of installing traffic lights at the junction is around £250,000.
Negotiations between councillors and the local authority’s roads team are beginning to bear fruit.
Mr Gowans said: “We need to turn these talks into action.
“Enough is enough. We are heading into winter now and that is when it starts to become dangerous.
“We recognise it is an issue and we need the council to recognise that work needs to be done if we are going to have a safe place for everyone in our community.”
