http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-39076028
The number of vehicles travelling at excess speed has fallen by 95% in the first two years of the system being in place, according to a new report.
CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Debate!
Is dualling the A9 really that bad?
(597 posts)-
Posted 7 years ago #
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The latest quarterly statistics from the A9 Safety Group also showed that although the cameras have dramatically cut speeding, the proportion of drivers breaking the limit crept up again late last year.
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Posted 7 years ago # -
The bike path beside some of the (I assume) recently dualled bits is considerably smoother than the old one, if my experiences of yesterday are anything to go by.
Posted 7 years ago # -
Headline: "A9 average speed camera safety record marred by fatal crashes"
Article: "A total of ten people have been killed in the first two years of camera operation, compared to the previous average of 16."
"Total casualties have fallen from 235 to 147."
Why not go with a headline of "Average speed cameras greatly improve safety record of A9"?
(I'm guessing a "casualty" here is anyone who's been injured?)
Posted 7 years ago # -
(A90)
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Motoring groups, safety charities, the police and business leaders all said they support the installation of the 30 cameras on the 50-mile stretch of the dual carriageway.
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Posted 7 years ago # -
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One of Scotland’s largest projects ever could become a “huge waste of money” because it is not future-proofed for the self-driving and electric vehicles which will become its main traffic.
Civil engineer Derek Halden said the £3 billion upgrade of the A9 between Perth and Inverness risked being as big a mistake as not dualling the road as part of major improvements in the 1980s.
Halden, who is also secretary of think tank the Scottish Transport Studies Group, said the 80 miles of new dual carriageway could become redundant because less space would be needed for autonomous vehicles.
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http://www.scotsman.com/news/transport/a9-dualling-will-deliver-road-unfit-for-future-1-4459045
Posted 7 years ago # -
Driverless cars will not "empty out" the roads. Instead, they will create new journeys that weren't otherwise possible before.
3 hour commute while asleep anyone?
Posted 7 years ago # -
"Instead, they will create new journeys that weren't otherwise possible before."
Seems more likely.
Think his argument is that they could be driven 'safely' close together, which seems dubious!
Posted 7 years ago # -
Allowing cars to drive more closely together increases the capacity of the roads, same as "one more lane." And we all know what happens when you increase the capacity of roads...
Posted 7 years ago # -
3 hour commute while asleep anyone?
With a totally autonomous car you could have it potter up and down the roads all night while you sleep, and have it deliver you to work in the morning. Save money on accommodation.
Posted 7 years ago # -
Save money on accommodation.
United States, as ever, leading the way for the United Kingdom.
Posted 7 years ago # -
Posted 7 years ago #
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“The other performance data continues to support the positive change in driver behaviour on the route and also highlights evidence to show that the journey time for people travelling between Perth and Inverness has remained consistent.
“The Group’s commitment to making the A9 a safer route will also see a specific safety campaign being launched in June which will focus on driver behaviour related to distraction. Evidence from Police Scotland’s crash investigators highlights a concerning trend of distraction being a significant factor as the cause of accidents on the route and the campaign is designed to raise awareness of this issue.”
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Posted 7 years ago # -
@slowcoach
Ah. Maybe it's just me that gets to looking at the hills then...
Posted 7 years ago # -
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Widening 80 miles of the A9 to dual carriageway between Perth and Inverness, and 86 miles of the A96 between Aberdeen and the Highland capital, will be on a different scale to the new bridge, at a currently-estimated £3 billion apiece.
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Posted 7 years ago # -
For the A9 and A96, it is true that the railway lines which largely follow them are also being upgraded - but the estimated combined cost of some £400m is a fraction of that being spent on the new dual carriageways.
Could someone remind me what improvements are being made to the railways here? Thanks.
Posted 7 years ago # -
nedd1e_h - here you go:
Highland mainline: https://www.transport.gov.scot/projects/highland-main-line/highland-main-line/
Aberdeen-Inverness: https://www.transport.gov.scot/projects/aberdeen-to-inverness-rail-improvements/aberdeen-to-inverness-rail-improvements/
The two projects are very limited in scope and appear to be being delivered by a special snail battalion of Network Rail's orange army - Aberdeen-Inverness is due for completion in 2030.
Posted 7 years ago # -
I'm surprised at how cheap railways seem to be in comparison to trunk road upgrades. The whole of the Borders railway was (I think) a tenth of the cost of dualling the A9. I imagine building an entirely new railway from scratch would cost more, but given the Victorians already did the hard work of creating level(ish) routes, we could probably undo most of Beeching's work for the cost of one big motorway. Reopening the direct route from Dumfries to Stranraer could potentially take a lot of the ferry freight off the A75 and would make a massive difference to the region. I can understand that cycling infrastructure isn't very exciting or involve enough big boy's toys but surely reopening an actual railway is something for a politician to be proud of?
Posted 7 years ago # -
Spot the difference
Same story, stronger headline now.
Posted 06:00 and not apparently updated.
Curious.
Posted 7 years ago # -
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Has there been a rise in serious accidents and fatalities on the A9 as a result of distracted drivers?
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Posted 7 years ago # -
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He estimated that a direct line would cost £1.5 billion – less than half the A9 road dualling project – but do “a great deal more for connectivity and sustainability”
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Posted 7 years ago # -
Posted 7 years ago #
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We had in interesting journey down the A9 on Monday morning. We came along the old A9 south of Kincraig and on that stretch of road we came behind a hearse, complete with coffin. The hearse was being driven with a good deal of aggression, the driver going for overtakes wherever possible.
In spite of this, and the fact that we were sticking to the speed limit and only overtaking on the dual carriageways, we kept seeing the hearse up ahead. At Perth, its driver took one lane to the roundabout and we took the other and passed it. So all the speed and overtaking gained nothing.
I'm not sure what this anecdote demonstrates...
Posted 7 years ago # -
“
THE Scottish Government’s Programme for Government earlier this month promised to “electrify” the A9 between Perth and Inverness for road vehicles. The plan was widely welcomed.
But there were no similar promises for the Highland main line. It is single track for much of its length, and the passing places are only long enough for freight trains of 300 metres.
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http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/15554335.On_the_wrong_track_over_Highland_rail/
Posted 7 years ago # -
@chdot, I have struggled to understand those words but am tired after a very enjoyable round the pentlands jaunt.
By 'electrify' they just mean dual carriageway. By passing place for trains they mean section of twin track.
Do newspapers not employ subeditors now to make sure the journalism is understandable?
Posted 7 years ago # -
Presume “electrify” is the plan to have charging points for electric cars.
Posted 7 years ago # -
Posted 7 years ago #
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