Need for A75/A77 improvements "critical" as summit meets for the first time
The South West Scotland Transport Alliance want to see the process sped up
Community leaders and politicians are calling on the UK and Scottish Governments to provide a better timeline for when work will start on the A75 and A77.
In a first for the South West Scotland Transport Alliance (SWSTA), a meeting today (January 29) will bring together business leaders, local politicians, MSPs, and representatives from the community who will make the case for improvement on both roads.
The Safer, Greener, Better: A75/A77 Summit will focus on what needs to be done to improve safety, and to address environmental and economic concerns.
The SWSTA is led by Stena Line, P&O, and Belfast Harbour, and the coalition’s Nicola Abernethy wants to see better communication to the public.
"Not fit for purpose"
She said: “We have been arguing for years that the a75 and a77 are not fit for purpose, and improvements need to be made.
“We’re finally starting to see some movement, and both the Scottish government and Westminster have made commitments but what we want to see now are timescales.”
There is a growing demand in both Dumfries and Galloway, and South Ayrshire for pledges from the governments to be put into action.
Westminster recently promised £8m to Transport Scotland so a feasibility study could be carried out on bypassing Crocketford and Springholm on the A75, while Holyrood highlighted several improvements on both roads.
"Primarily this is a safety issue"
Ms Abernathy finished by saying: “The main focus of the summit will be highlighting the issues with each road and discussing what needs to be done next to keep pushing for change.
“Primarily this is a safety issue, the roads aren’t fit for purpose, and they pass through far too many villages and towns.”