MSP’s anger at traffic chaos

And Elaine Murray MSP has hit out at Transport Scotland for the traffic chaos in and around the town on Saturday and Sunday following the closure of a section of the A75 bypass.
A number of constituents have been in touch with her to describe how it took them up to an hour to get from one side of the town to the other.
She has therefore written to the chief executive of Transport Scotland, David Middleton, to determine what went wrong with the closure.
Dr Murray said: “It’s no wonder that local people were so angry with the traffic delays over the weekend. Transport Scotland have obviously failed to properly consult on the closure, otherwise they would have known that a number of festivals were taking place in the area. That, along with extra traffic resulting from the end of the English school holidays ended in utter chaos in the town.
“I also find it strange that Transport Scotland felt the need to close the entire stretch of the road, when previous resurfacing work has been completed using a convoy system.”
She added: “The real issue here isn’t the extreme delays, but the ripple effect they have on local businesses and therefore the local economy.
“Transport Scotland need to look into what went wrong over the weekend, and work to prevent it happening again during the next round of closures.”
Responding, a Transport Scotland spokesman said: “The work carried-out at the weekend was an essential part of a £6 million pound investment to reconstruct and resurface the Dumfries bypass.
“Our operating company, Scotland Transerv, did everything it could to warn people in advance of the closure of the A75.
“We take all steps possible to try to avoid inconvenience for road users and the work was carried out at the weekend when traffic flows are lightest.”