Dual the A75 campaigner’s Danny Pool and Lewis Irving met with Mr Douglas Kirkpatrick, the leading officer of SWestrans, a group set up by Transport Scotland to determine and deliver better transport for Dumfries and Galloway. The meeting was set up for the two groups to discuss their feelings on the A75, why it should be dualled and what the campaigners can do to keep building on an already successful campaign.
Mr Kirkpatrick discussed a previous attempt at dualling the A75 from Gretna to Dumfries that was rejected by Transport Scotland. Dumfries and Galloway Council put together a STAG report which cost between £80,000 to £100,000 to complete and this report highlighted how the road could be dualled, what changes would need to be done and how specific junctions could be altered or moved to suit the road. With this news the campaign group will be emailing Transport Scotland and demanding to know why it was simply rejected.
With the upcoming councillor elections, the campaign group was invited by Mr Kirkpatrick to make a presentation to the newly elected council board later this year to highlight parts of our campaign that they feel are the most important. Major campaign concerns are the communities of Springholm and Crocketford, which must be bypassed as soon as possible, as well as the newly built Dumfries Hospital on the edge of the A75 along with a new supermarket store being constructed near the A75 and cuckoo bridge roundabout – the campaign group agrees with SWestrans that a south Dumfries bypass should be constructed to divert traffic from the current busy and inadequate bypass.
Finally, the campaign group has agreed to work alongside Swestrans to try and push for the dualling of the A75. The campaigners would like to thank Mr Kirkpatrick for meeting with them and for agreeing to help them with their fight to see the A75 upgraded to a dual carriageway.
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