Accidents, safety concerns /works/alterations A74(M) south Junction 14: EIR release
Information request and response under the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004.
FOI reference: FOI/18/01461
Date received: 24 May 2018
Date responded: 22 June 2018
Information requested
Regarding the A74 motorway, Glasgow to Carlisle road approximately 6 miles south of the junction 14, near to Tinny bank, Crawford. We have been advised that this may be an accident hotspot and are seeking information in relation to the locus. We are looking for information in the period 18/11/11 to present. In terms of location we can be no more precise than stated.
As the information you have requested is 'environmental information' for the purposes of the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (EIRs), we are required to deal with your request under those Regulations. We are applying the exemption at section 39(2) of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA), so that we do not also have to deal with your request under FOISA.
This exemption is subject to the 'public interest test'. Therefore, taking account of all the circumstances of this case, we have considered if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exemption. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding the exemption, because there is no public interest in dealing with the same request under two different regimes. This is essentially a technical point and has no material effect on the outcome of your request.
Response
The A74(M) I M74 motorway is the main north to south artery from the English Border to Glasgow. Between the English Border (Junction 22) and Millbank (Junction 12), the motorway is operated and maintained on behalf of Transport Scotland by Autolink Concessionaires (M6) pie under a thirty year Design, Build, Finance and Operate (DBFO) Agreement which started on the 29th July 1997.
As required by the Agreement, Autolink undertake Road Safety Audits (RSA) every 3 years which analyse road traffic incidents occurring on the Project Road.
Please refer to Annex A which is an extract from the most recent report, RSA 10. The extract records the Road Safety Auditor's analysis of incident clusters on the network. None of the clusters identified is in the area of the incident are under review, and no recommendations were raised in connection with them.
In addition to the RSA 10 report, at Annex B which is a report dated 2014 is attached which Autolink commissioned following anecdotal evidence from Police Scotland that the number of RTls occurring on the route appeared to be increasing.
From our records only one RTI occurred on 18/11/16 in the vicinity of Tinnybank (Marker Post 76/9). A site meeting was held with Police Scotland in relation to this incident, and no recommendations arose in terms of improvements or alterations to the existing road features at the locus.
In 2012 Autolink commenced a 5 year major maintenance resurfacing programme. Works were carried out between the 29th September and the 18th October 2012 on the south bound carriageway at Tinnybank, comprising reconstruction of Lane 1 and resurfacing of Lane 2. No defects were identified in lane 3 at the time, but this was resurfaced under a later programme of work in 2015.
Please refer to Annex C which contains the accident data for the time frame requested.
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