East Sutherland communities demand action on A9 problems

A road manager has warned that there is no “magic wand” to solve difficulties with trunk road traffic experienced by three East Sutherland communities.

But Transport Scotland’s A9 area manager Marco Bardelli, has agreed to make site visits later this year to particular blackspots on the A9 through Golspie, Brora and Helmsdale.

Mr Bardelli discussed the issues with community council representatives at a meeting in Brora Hub on Monday evening.

East Sutherland and Edderton councillor Deirdre Mackay, who chaired the meeting, said pedestrians, and particularly the elderly and disabled were having difficulty crossing the road at points because of the volume of traffic, the perceived speed and the narrowness of the roads and pavement. HGVs were a particular problem.

She said: “There is a raft of issues with the A9 but underpinning everything is the three villages were never designed for the volume of traffic that they have now. They were designed for horses and carts.”

She added that the communities wanted a lower speed limit but had been lobbying for 10 years without success and were now losing patience.

Mr Bardelli said: “There is no magic wand to sort it out.”

Another meeting is to be held following the site visits and Cllr Mackay is to write to all Highland MSPs asking them to prioritise the issue.

Do you want to respond to this article? If so, click here to submit your thoughts and they may be published in print.