Minister disputes his own figures
WEST Aberdeenshire & Kincardine MSP Mike Rumbles has slammed Transport Minister Stewart Stevenson after the minister claimed that Scottish Government evidence to the Scottish Parliament's Public Petitions Committee was not correct.
Scottish Government agency Transport Scotland submitted a report as evidence to the Committee in October 2009 showing that a grade separated junction on the A90 at Laurencekirk could be built for 4.6 million.
However addressing the Committee on Tuesday, the Minister claimed that the figure was incorrect.
Mr Stevenson had been summoned to appear before the Public Petitions Committee to justify his reasons for continuing to refuse to build a flyover at Laurencekirk.
Mike Rumbles said: "It is ridiculous for the Scottish Government to formally submit evidence to the committee saying that a flyover at Laurencekirk could be built for 4.6 million, but then for the Transport Minister to turn round a few months later and trash his own report. How can we take anything the Minister says seriously when he contradicts himself in this way?
"The Minister made it clear that the only chance of getting a flyover was if and when 1,000 new houses are built in Laurencekirk. That could take years, and who knows how many serious and fatal accidents there might be up until that point?"
The Minister revealed that a flyover would only be considered if there were three fatal accidents at the junction in three years and offered a meeting between petitioner Jill Campbell and officials from Transport Scotland.
Jill Campbell said: "I will meet with the officials from Transport Scotland but they have clearly made their mind up already. I felt the Minister was patronising and twice made the point that he was not willing to meet with me himself. For the Minister to say that we need another two deaths in the next two years before they will even consider a flyover beggars belief."
Last week, Transport Scotland appeared to rebuff a suggestion by North-east Scotland MSP Alex Johnstone that a grade-separated junction at Laurencekirk should be included in the contract and funding arrangements for the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route.
Mr Johnstone said this course of action would break the funding deadlock as the work could be carried out more quickly and at a lower cost than if it were a stand-alone project.
Transport Scotland detailed all the safety measures which have been approved for the three Laurencekirk junctions with the A90, but these have been condemned by all as "costmetic" and "good money after bad."
A massive level of housebuilding is predicted for Laurencekirk in the years ahead and developers Kirkwood Homes and Scotia Homes have been told that they will be expected to make financial contributions towards a grade-separated junction.
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