A farmer involved in a fatal car crash has called for urgent action to be taken on one of the north-east’s most notorious danger roads.
John Rennie believes work on the A947 Aberdeen-Banff route today would save lives tomorrow.
And he said he was speaking out in the hope that he could stop just one person becoming the victim of a serious or fatal smash.
He uses the A947 almost every day, and fears there could be years of inaction while Aberdeenshire Council consults with the community about improvements.
He wants the authority to take some simple steps to make the route safer immediately – such as chopping back overgrown verges.
Mr Rennie, 73, said: “We’ve been waiting for a long time to get something done about this road.
“At the bit where I live, we’ve got neighbours who won’t come out on to the A947 – one lady I know makes a four-mile detour to avoid coming on to the road.”
During the winter Mr Rennie is contracted by the local authority to clear snow from Aberdeenshire’s roads and is well aware of the importance of maintaining the routes.
He said “good housekeeping” was required near the junction he uses at Darra, south of Turriff, to clear the verges which he claims are overgrown and a significant hazard.
“Why spend all the money on the road and not do the housekeeping? The grass is now overgrowing bollards – it’s a disgrace,” he said.
Mr Rennie added he was even willing to chop back the overgrown grass himself, but is concerned he would be putting himself in danger.
“This could be rectified in 20 minutes,” he said. “A public consultation could take years. You take your life in your hands pulling out – the number of times drivers are right up behind you is unreal.”
The farmer was involved in a recent crash which left one young man dead and several people badly injured.
He said he wanted focus on improving safety for drivers in the future.
He added: “I’m trying to save one life in the half-mile stretch outside us – if I can save one life, we’ve been successful.”
Earlier this month, the council’s strategy manager Mark Skilling revealed the council would be undertaking a 20-year improvement plan on the A947.
It will involve talking to the farming community and residents in the owns and villages along the route about their concerns on the road.
Mr Rennie added: “The council can put in longer lay-bys, but by the time it gets through planners we’re looking at three or four years. But this work today, cutting down trees and grass, could save a life tomorrow, it’s as simple as that.”
Last night, Banff and Buchan area committee chairman John Cox – who serves as an SNP administration member on the infrastructure committee – said: “I have noticed at a number of junctions it can be quite difficult to see because of the long grass. I recognise what he’s saying.
“I’m pleased people are coming forward with quick-win ideas and not just huge capital costs, and we’d encourage people to get involved in the consultation and have their comments formally noted.
“The council can’t do everything. There is a schedule of grass cutting and this is the quickest growing season, but then there’s a balance between what the council can and can’t do and people’s safety which is most important.
“Maybe at the end of the day some of the farmers will be able to provide a service that is cost-effective.”
Meanwhile, Turriff councillor and farmer Sandy Duncan has called for the creation of overtaking lanes on sections of the road to help ease traffic.
He said; “What I’d like to see are some overtaking lanes to let traffic flow more freely. It’s frustration that leads other drivers to overtake where it isn’t safe.”
