Blunder means 50mph limit remains on A90 near Brechin
A lowered speed limit is being kept in place along a stretch of the A90 due to a blunder with the road’s new surface.
The recent resurfacing work between St Ann’s and Keithock, near Brechin, has left the central reservation safety barrier too low for the road’s normal speed limit.
Transport Scotland has therefore had to to prolong the 50mph limit, despite the work being finished weeks ago.
Official answers obtained by local MSP Liam Kerr admitted the new road surface had “slightly reduced the effective height of the central reservation safety barrier”, requiring a lower speed limit as a precaution.
The Scottish Government’s roads agency is also unable to say whether further work will be required to fix the problem.
SNP transport secretary Stephen Flynn said it will monitor the performance of the barrier before deciding what action is needed, adding that disruption is “minimal”.
North East Scottish Conservative Mr Kerr has raised questions over why such an obvious consequence was not identified before the project was signed off.
He said: “This work was long overdue and presumably months, if not years, in the planning. Most people would expect its impact as a whole, including the critical barrier in the middle, to be considered before the work is carried out – not once it has already been completed.
“Instead, drivers are facing a lengthy 50mph restriction while officials review a situation that should never have arisen in the first place.
“Stephen Flynn and the SNP government seem to have a lax view on transport budgets and how much mistakes like this might ultimately cost. But the taxpaying public will expect answers as to how this happened and what it will cost to put right."
In his written reply, Mr Flynn said: “Before reinstatement of the 70mph speed limit can take place, Transport Scotland must evaluate the performance of the route following the recent resurfacing works.
“This will involve analysing data collected from the completed works and earlier investigations to inform future maintenance requirements, including assessing the condition and, importantly, the performance of the central reserve concrete safety barrier.”