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Rail group crosses fingers hoping government ditches fully dualling A9

North rail campaigners have talked down calls to fully dual the A9 and say more consideration should be given to rail improvements instead. Image: Jason Hedges/DC Thomson
North rail campaigners have talked down calls to fully dual the A9 and say more consideration should be given to rail improvements instead. Image: Jason Hedges/DC Thomson

A North rail campaign group hopes the Scottish Government “avoids the temptation” to fully dual the A9 and listens less to the “powerful” roads lobby.

The Friends of the Far North Line organisation believes the rail network should be the focus of investment instead.

Convener Ian Budd says the road’s most-feared junctions should be fixed instead to save lives.

He hopes Transport Scotland “follows through on the Scottish Government’s policy of modal shift to rail and avoids the temptation to build, or upgrade, roads in the area”.

And he believes climate change should “cause a rethink in the way transport funds are allocated”.

‘Dualling A9 will not cut car miles’

An electric car charging. Image: Shutterstock

Under the A9 dualling plan, costed at £3 billion at 2008 prices, 80 miles of single carriageway between Perth and Inverness will be upgraded.

Those in favour say it is needed to make the road safer, and to accommodate the rise in traffic, including electric cars.

A leading Highland councillor wants to go even further and dual the road right to the Far North.

Audit and scrutiny committee leader Trish Robertson believes a bigger road “is vital not just for the freeport, but for the buses and electric cars, our future transport options”.

She added: “Hydrogen infrastructure and production is also planned for around the north coast and the spaceport will also require good road connections.

‘I am just as frustrated as other drivers’

Ian Budd, convener of the Friends of the Far North Line. Image: DC Thomson

But Mr Budd says electric cars need electricity and are a strain on the environment, so it is best to bite the bullet and put the big money into the rail service.

He added: “I know there is a dilemma around there not being any figures to back up my assertion that we do not need to fully dual the A9.

“My assertion is really based on the fact that dualling the A9 is never discussed as a capacity issue, it is always discussed as a frustration issue.

“I am as frustrated as other drivers, but I have a problem with building roads just so that I do not get frustrated driving behind a lorry.”

‘Roads lobby needs to budge’

An HGV. Image: Shutterstock

Mr Budd said the roads lobby is understandably concerned about hauliers’ livelihoods,  but argues one rail freight load can remove around 70 lorries from the road.

He added: “The roads lobby seems to be politically very powerful and it seems to be hard for other voices in the debate to be heard.”

Addressing the safety argument, Mr Budd said: “MSP Fergus Ewing gets angry about the A9 not being dualled but the thing that he talks about is safety.

“Of course, it’s a tragedy every time someone gets killed, but there are ways to mitigate that, the junctions where many of the accidents are occurring can be made safer.

“We feel the whole issue needs to be looked at properly and we need to ask ourselves,  why do we need to fully dual the A9?”

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