ANGRY residents have called for action to tackle speeding motorists on a notorious stretch of the A814 between Dumbarton and Helensburgh.
Householders in Ardoch, near Cardross, say it’s only a matter of time before someone is killed on the busy road.
Locals pleaded for action following an accident on May 1 involving a white Kia. That day, householder Raymond Bentinck discovered the car had apparently crashed off the road, through a hedge, over a burn, through a fence, through another hedge and had demolished a wood shed before striking a tree in his garden.
No-one was inside the car when it was found, but a woman was subsequently charged with alleged dangerous driving.
Worries over speeding in the area were first reported in the Reporter in 2011, and have continued since the speed limit was reduced from 60 miles an hour to 40 in 2013.
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Several Ardoch residents brought their concerns to a meeting of Cardross Community Council last week.
Mr Bentinck told the meeting he had raised safety concerns with Argyll and Bute Council’s head of roads following the accident at the start of this month – and said he was “aghast” at the response he had received.
Mr Bentinck told the meeting: “The response speaks about one accident in Ardoch since 2016. That is inaccurate.
“Less than two years ago a van ploughed into my boundary wall, taking down a lamp-post. Then another van ploughed into a separate lamp-post.
“We’ve had four or five accidents in Ardoch in the last two years. Action needs to be taken to protect people’s lives.”
The section of the A814 through Ardoch has a 40mph speed limit – but Mr Bentinck said traffic in both directions repeatedly and regularly breached that limit.
Another resident, Emma Alexander, said she knew of three vehicles that had lost control and crashed in Ardoch in the six months since she moved to the area.
She added: “If any fatality were to happen, how could we live with ourselves when we’ve had so many warnings?”
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Argyll and Bute councillor David Kinniburgh said the council could only act on the basis of police accident records.
He added: “My understanding is that Police Scotland will only record an accident as an accident if it involves a slight injury, a serious injury or a fatality
However, Police Scotland said that contrary to Cllr Kinniburgh’s understanding of the situation, the May 1 crash had indeed been recorded in police figures as one which involved an injury – and added that local authorities could take road safety decisions based on information other than police crash data.
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