http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/motoringissues/The-toll-road-The-dangers.6634165.jp
CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Debate!
"The dangers of driving the A9"
(31 posts)-
Posted 13 years ago #
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It is notorious, but as i keep on saying its not the road, its the drivers.
Trialing an increase in speed for LGV from 40 to 50 on single carraigeways ! incredible, a car should be able to accelarete past a vehicle travelling at 40 much qyuicker than one at 50, the reason that LGV are limited is cause at 44 tons,45 feet long, or more it takes an incrediblly unappreciated length of time to stop. Most Lgv will pull in, it takes about 2 minutes to allow a big que to pass.People in this country, Scotland seem to forget where they live, this is not the french riviera, our weather affects our ability to travel,drumochter summit has already seen ,significant accumulations of snow. We dont have 8 lane highways, how important is it to get past that lorry or bus ? Gewnerally thats all that people want, just past ! not getting quicker to their destination just past !
Why do people always want to get where they are going so fast ? So they can get back quicker to spend more time getting ready to do it again tomorrow !Posted 13 years ago # -
Can't disagree with anything splitshift says. I've driven that road countless times and people are so utterly impatient it's scary. A lot of drivers seem to hate the thought of having someone in front of them.
I was up at the Trossachs for the weekend just gone, and driving up there was in a queue behind someone driving pretty slowly. A couple of people took risks getting past (one, incredibly, overtaking about 5 cars, tucking in front juuuuuust as they reached a 90 degree blind right hand turn). I waited, they turned off in Callander, 5 minutes later I was behind another queue and, lo and behold, the two risk-taking motorists were there a couple of cars ahead.
Posted 13 years ago # -
p.s. And I do drive a sporty little number capable of getting past pretty damned quickly, but I'll still only do it where perfectly safe to do so.
And as splitshift says (and I think it bears repeating) surely having LGVs driving more quickly makes them harder to overtake???
Posted 13 years ago # -
"And as splitshift says (and I think it bears repeating) surely having LGVs driving more quickly makes them harder to overtake???"
Clearly there is this fantasy notion that more people will be 'happy' to sit at 50 rather than 40!
Posted 13 years ago # -
'Fantasy' is right!
Posted 13 years ago # -
Why do people always want to get where they are going so fast?
Because anywhere that is 'yay far away' <holds hands more than 30 miles apart> must be travelled to at maximum possible speed, because that's, like, a huge distance and it'll take ages! So the mindset is that I, the important driver who has not a second to waste, have an expectation, ergo a right, to get to my destination at the speed typical of a motorway. Because motorways let me go great distances at high speed. If it's not a motorway, then I'll just go at that speed anyway because I should be able to.
And so the driver him or herself is absolved of fault, and it therefore must be the road that is wrong. A corner? Well it's obviously too sharp, and they-haven't-even-put-that-grip-stuff-down. A straight that's too short? But the driver has a right to overtake! So a faster car is needed, too. And that raises motorway speed expectation even higher, which makes the road even more at fault.
"Slow down? Me? Are you mad?"
Posted 13 years ago # -
"Clearly there is this fantasy notion that more people will be 'happy' to sit at 50 rather than 40! "
The 50mph idea seems to be just something someone at the IAD has said, so it's unlikely to happen. Is the 40mph limit not effectively dictated by Europe?
But I actually think that you would see less overtaking if lorries were doing 50 rather than 40. I think many poeple will be happy to sit at 50 whereas they will feel that 40 is just too slow.
The A9 has no sharp corners and generally pretty good sight lines so there are lots of opportunities to overtake. Has the road been made more dangerous by making it 'safer'?
Posted 13 years ago # -
Arellcat If it's not a motorway, then I'll just go at that speed anyway because I should be able to.
Pretty accurate observation. Of course more dual carriageway is what is on the cards - expect this commitment at next election in May 11.
But just as narrow roads are so 'last century' I wonder though if the time has not come to improve 'passing opportunties' for trains?
This too may help to avoid the railway shutting at the first snowfall. (I bet rail will be off before the road this week if there's snow)Posted 13 years ago # -
Ah ha, LaidBack, it depends on what kind of snow!
Posted 13 years ago # -
Interesting that the Hootsmon isn't allowing comments. I suspect that's because many would be highlighting the fact that the A9 would be well on the way to being dualled if the opposition parties hadn't diverted £500m of funding to the Edinburgh
trainsettram line.Passing down the A9 last week, I noticed that a significant section of NCN7 on the "old" road had been subsumed by the roadworks at Crubenmore. I checked the Sustrans site and there was nothing about this. I've emailed and still nothing.
Does anyone have a personal contact at Sustrans who might be able to look into this??
Thanks
Posted 13 years ago # -
LizAh ha, LaidBack, it depends on what kind of snow!
You mean leaves surely? Any kind of snow will cause rail chaos - unless of course we have learnt from last year.
druidhNCN7 on the "old" road had been subsumed by the roadworks at Crubenmore.
I remember someone who ran a B&B at Newtonmore wrote a whole report on how the roadside NCN path was basically parked on, dumped on and generally not maintained at Drumochter. Wonder if it has been improved?
Posted 13 years ago # -
in a word, no.
came over Drumochter yesterday on the bus and the cycle route as a parking space and storage depot for heavy machinery and materials.
Posted 13 years ago # -
Hopefully they won't just take the easy option and 'divert' the cycle route via Laggan for the duration (or forever?).
Posted 13 years ago # -
"Killer A9 even more dangerous after road safety revamp, insist motorists"
http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/scotland/Killer-A9-even-more-dangerous.6640247.jp
Posted 13 years ago # -
I particularly like this comment.
"Transport Scotland are saying it's drivers to blame and driving is bad, but they knew that before they built this stretch and should have taken that into account."
Posted 13 years ago # -
A9 Cyclepath -
"This is a major inconvenience for cyclists as, apart from the shuttle bus, the only alternative is to cycle on the A9."
Posted 13 years ago # -
For the cyclepath resurfacing south of Dalwhinnie:
"Work starts in January for about 6 weeks and there will be some minor disruption to cyclists. This work [...] will involve its closure until August 2011."
Eh?
There is an explanation on how to get past the Crubenmore roadworks though:
"John Paul Construction (JPC) have closed the existing cycle at Crubenmore and erected sign boards at the Crubenmore junction and the Glentruim ( Laggan) Junction advising the cyclists to contact the following number for transportation from either end of the works. . Once contacted John Paul Construction will arrange Kingussie Taxis to collect the cyclists by shuttle bus."
Posted 13 years ago # -
Bizarre.
Surely it makes more sense just to cycle the A889 to Catlodge and then the minor road to Glentruim?
Posted 13 years ago # -
ok, monday night and am just back from Elgin, whiskey trail and A9. No sharp corners ???? At 50,60 in a car never mind a lorry most are very sharp when you have to stomp on the brake and turn to avoid the suicidel monarch of the glen who attempts to stare you out, in deepest midwinter !Visibility might be ok on many stretches but that just increases my incredulity when some cretin of a car driver pulls out ( inevitably from the house Bruar )straight across my path, I am doing the lagall limit for my class of vehicle,40 mph,they then travel at 38, watching the scenery. so ive had to almost emergency stop, withg all the traffic behind me, not run into the back of this car, work out how much of my load I am now going to have to hand unload cause its all just shifted,change almost 16 gears, just to get going again,use all of my 500 brake horse power to get back to optimum speed,then watch as the lunatics behind me decide it was all my fault and then try to overtake me up a hill, sweeping left hander and therfore blind,just before I roll into a large layby that I was going to go into anyway ! The car that pulled out was a Prius, so they can feel all warm and cuddly at night !This happened today ! Agree why all the plant is on the cycle way is abit strange,hills are lovely though. RAF, I assume, were out as well buzzin the A9 in their fancy planes.very cool !Not many cycles today !!!!
Biggest problem with the A9 apart from the Prius drivers is the fact that many laybys are still filled with snow,and at night you can hardly see if its safe to pull in to let others pass. And if a lorry does pull in ,a wee flash of your indicators or hazard lights might not technicaly be in the highway code but it does go a long way to make our move seem appreciated ! Then of course theres the car drivers who overtake on the dual carraigeway sections, I am doing 50, legal limit and they pass at 53,not noticing the snow encrouiching into my nearside, dramatically narrowing my lane. Just drive over the snow I hear you say, your big enough, but that causes a serious inbalance in traction and can be enough to cause a jack knife ! get out, get past and get away !
this is turning into a rant !!!!Really need to get back on my bike and slow down !
as they say at the start of Hill Street Blues,be carefull out there !Posted 13 years ago # -
Dual carriageway at Crubenmore opens.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-15074045
No mention of the proposed underpass. I assume they did build it?
Posted 12 years ago # -
cb - nope. Any underpass or bridge would be a seperate project. All Transport Scotland committed to doing in May this year was investigating the feasibility of such a project.
Posted 12 years ago # -
Oh well, it's the thought that counts.
Posted 12 years ago # -
I wonder if the underpass will be funded from the trunk roads budget? Or will it be left to the diminished sustainable and active travel budget? In the latter case, Newtonmore's horses may all be in the knacker's yard by the time it's built!
Posted 12 years ago # -
What a missed opportunity. Surely much easier and cheaper to build an underpass when the road was being widened rather than wait till it's finish to (even thing about) begin(ning)
Posted 12 years ago # -
No underpass yet.
I was up there cycling a few weeks back and managed to pull out of the Glen Truim road, onto the A9 dual carriageway and do a right turn into Etteridge only being overtaken by two vehicles in the process. That was midday-ish. From what I remember, the right-turn "lane" into Etteridge looked permanent, so any competent cyclist would cope with this manoeuvre. Not so easy for the horsists tho....
Posted 12 years ago # -
kaputnik - can you imagine going to the original contractors and saying "oh - hang on, there's just some changes we want to make...". It would be the trams fiasco all over again :-)
Posted 12 years ago # -
Dave,
Looks like Dennis Canavan was involved too. I've always found him to be one of the good guys. So good in fact that he was deselected but won anyway.
He is well known as a walker.
Posted 12 years ago # -
I was up there cycling a few weeks back and managed to pull out of the Glen Truim road, onto the A9 dual carriageway and do a right turn into Etteridge only being overtaken by two vehicles in the process. That was midday-ish.
Presumably 'rush hour' traffic (is there such a thing round Newtonmore way?) will be heavier, but your experience does rather raise the issue of why the hell it is a dual carriageway if the traffic is so light?
Posted 12 years ago #
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