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Bid to reduce accidents at Aberdeen bypass junction

by Jamie Hall
28/10/2019, 7:08 am Updated: 28/10/2019, 5:46 pm
The Kingswells South roundabout, where the A944 meets the AWPR, has been the scene of a number of near misses
The Kingswells South roundabout, where the A944 meets the AWPR, has been the scene of a number of near misses

An Aberdeen councillor has vowed to keep fighting for a solution to reduce accidents at a major road junction.

Kingswells, Sheddocksley and Summerhill councillor Steve Delaney has raised concerns over the number of incidents and near misses at the Kingswells South roundabout, where the A944 meets the AWPR.

Mr Delaney said he had been contacted by people concerned over the difficulty they had getting onto the junction and the length of queues.

Councillor Steve Delaney

However, he was told by Transport Scotland that a full evaluation of the junction would only be conducted after 12 months, looking at various factors including accident statistics.

Mr Delaney revealed he had been in further contact with the body and said bosses had acknowledged an engineering solution would need to be found.

He added: “It seemed like Transport Scotland was going to sit back for 12 months waiting for accidents to happen. Even then, an assessment of the statistics and any recommendations arising from these would likely have taken a few months more to agree, never mind to implement.

“There is hardly a week that goes by without a constituent contacting me about either an accident or a near miss. Despite this, Transport Scotland appears to be in no hurry to address the issue.

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“My understanding is that a report is to come to committee early next year outlining firm proposals on how to improve safety at the junction. I just hope it’s not too little, too late by then.

“I will continue to press for a solution to be taken forward and, more importantly, implemented as soon as possible.”

A spokeswoman for Transport Scotland said: “Safety is of paramount importance to us.

“As Councillor Delaney will be aware, we are working closely with Aberdeen City Council, the roads authority for the A944 Kingswells South Roundabout, to identify measures to improve the performance of this junction.

“Once an approach is agreed, we will provide road users with an update on these plans.

“We continue to advise motorists to adjust their driving to align with road conditions and always to approach any junction with care.”