Measures to cut down on traffic chaos caused by roadworks locally have gained cross-party support from councillors.
At a full meeting of West Dunbartonshire Council last week, members discussed a motion by Labour’s David McBride that would force utility firms to take steps that will minimise traffic management measures, ensure that work takes place every day that roadworks are in place and examine the impact on existing traffic lights and junctions.
He says he was forced to act following more works on Cardross Road, disrupting the journeys of thousands in areas like Brucehill, Castlehill and Westcliff.
Speaking about the situation, Councillor McBride said: “The example of Cardross Road is not unique, there are plenty of other roads in the authority where they have been issues.
“But while not unique, Cardross Road is the only way home for thousands of our residents.
“The disruption has caused intolerable traffic chaos for thousands of people in Dumbarton West.
“While recognising that the work is emergency, the utility firms must do better.
“There must be improved traffic management and the lights must work in conjunction with the lights at neighbouring junctions, so we don’t see the situation where there are green lights but nowhere to go.
“One of the major things I want to stress is that, for every day of closure, there must be workers on site all day every day. There is nothing more frustrating than being caught in an hour or 90 minutes of traffic, to drive by and see that nobody is working.
“Utility firms must work with the council to be efficient and sort out the emergencies.”
The move came following a week of chaos and lengthy delays on the A82 at Milton which is controlled by Amey and not the local authority,
And the issues on the A82 were raised by SNP group leader Karen Conaghan, who added: “I’m wholeheartedly on board with this.
“When things happen on the A82 as well then it can effectively bring Dumbarton to a standstill.
“I welcome David’s motion and I hope that, given we now have a head of road infrastructure focused solely on West Dunbartonshire, I hope that we’ll start to see some improvements.
“In the past our inspectors would’ve worked with traffic management companies, but there have been some vacancies in our department for quite a while.
“Hopefully all of this will move things along and the people of Dumbarton trying to get from A-to-B will be able to go about things without an inordinate wait.”
Whilst Labour’s Gurpreet Singh Johal, a resident of Dumbarton West, added: “In Dumbarton West, constituents including myself have faced a lot of hassle due to the traffic management measures.
“It is disappointing when emergency works are put in place, but there is no one carrying out the works.
“I was able to walk up and down Cardross Road to see that no work was taking place on three different occasions.
“The utility companies said that work is being carried out, but couldn’t be undertaken after a certain time. Whereas constituents tell us they want the work complete and away as quickly as possible.
“Hopefully we’re not going to have more weekends, especially during the holiday period, where constituents are disrupted.”
