Issues with the A77 were raised in a debate on rural roads in the Scottish Parliament last week.
MSPs debated a motion on rural roads infrastructure which highlighted that driving was “an essential part of daily life” in rural communities on Wednesday, November 13.
The debate came ahead of a meeting between the A77 Action Group and Transport Secretary Fiona Hyslop on Thursday, November 21.
South Scotland MSP Colin Smyth brought up issues with both the A77 and A75 during the debate including his view that the Scottish Government had failed to “set out a delivery plan for improvements to the A77”.
In 2022, the Scottish Government published their Strategic Transport Projects Review 2 which included upgrades to the A77.
In the debate, the regional MSP urged the Scottish Government to agree to a taskforce to consider the impact of the growing number of road closures on the A77 when routine maintenance is being carried out.
He said: “It is not just on local roads that rural communities see the consequences of cuts.
“Often, important trunk roads that cut across rural areas – no matter how strategically important they are – have suffered from chronic underinvestment, which makes them dangerous, hampers economic progress and actually slows efforts to improve the environment.
“For example, we can take the A75 and the A77, which are key routes to the ferry terminal at Cairnryan – the fifth busiest port in the UK. It is the hub from which businesses not just in South Scotland, but in central Scotland and northern England, trade into Northern Ireland and then south into the European Union.
“The need to upgrade the A75 and the A77 is, at its heart, about saving lives, but it is about improving them, too. Bypassing the towns and villages through which the roads currently run would cut congestion and emissions, from Springholm and Crocketford to Girvan and Kirkoswald.
“However, two years after the much-delayed second strategic transport projects review was published, there is still no delivery plan from the Scottish Government, even for the very modest and inadequate improvements that are proposed to both roads, and there is not a single penny of the investment that was promised for upgrading, either.
“The only investment that has been proposed in relation to the A75 is the £5million that was announced in the recent UK Government budget to complete a feasibility study into possible upgrades.
“I also urge the cabinet secretary, when she meets members of the A77 action group later this month, to listen to their call for a task force to bring together local stakeholders, Transport Scotland and Amey Highways to explore what more can be done to better manage road closures on both roads when maintenance is being carried out.
“Everyone understands that some closures are needed for road safety reasons. However, when the closure is in a rural location, the diversion is often lengthy and drives traffic on to small rural roads, which are simply not built for HGVs, causing damage and disruption to communities.
“Above all else, I hope that the cabinet secretary will set out when we will see a clear delivery and investment plan for those two key rural roads, which will save lives, grow our economy and improve the environment in the towns and villages across the south-west.”
Speaking in the debate, Ms Hyslop said: “I acknowledge that the debate has provided an opportunity for members to talk about different rural roads, including both trunk and local authority roads.
“I start by expressing my sincere sympathies to the families of anyone who has been killed or injured on our roads. Our thoughts are with the families and friends of those who have been involved in recent incidents.
“Road safety remains of paramount importance to the Government. That is reflected in our ambition to have zero deaths or serious injuries on our roads by 2050, with an interim target to halve the number of people who are killed or seriously injured on the road by 2030.
“I have listened closely to the discussion today, and I fully appreciate members’ desire to see further action on improvements.
“This Government recognises that investment in our responsibility for trunk roads is crucial for rural connectivity and accessing essential services. That is why funding is prioritised, in line with the sustainable investment hierarchy, for maintaining and safely operating our trunk roads and motorways.”
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