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Speed limit cut on major road over safety barrier fears

Jamie Calder
Amey The resurfaced A90 near Brechin. The dual carriageway continues straight with the safety barrier seen at the right hand side of the screen. Amey
The resurfacing of the A90 has left a section of its safety barrier not high enough

Part of a major road in Angus has seen its speed limit cut indefinitely after resurfacing work left a safety barrier 50mm (2in) too low.

The stretch of the A90 between St Ann's and Keithock junctions, near Brechin, is usually a 70mph road.

However, drivers will be limited to travelling at 50mph after the road was raised slightly during resurfacing, potentially rendering the safety barrier in its central reservation not high enough to protect people when travelling at higher speeds.

Transport Secretary Stephen Flynn said the change would have a "minimal" impact on drivers but did not set out a timeline for when the issue would be fixed.

The concerns were initially raised in a written question by Conservative MSP Liam Kerr.

In response, Flynn said: "The new road surface has slightly reduced the effective height of the central reservation safety barrier, and the speed limit provides an additional safety measure until permanent improvements can be completed."

The transport secretary said the change would result in the average travel times on the road increasing by "less than 90 seconds".

On Wednesday, Kerr submitted a follow-up question asking when the Scottish government believes the road would return to a 70mph limit.

Flynn explained that several tests would be needed to "evaluate the performance of the route following the recent resurfacing" but did not say when the limit would change.

While carrying out the resurfacing works, engineering firm Amey determined that to preserve the integrity of the underlying road structure it would be best to put the new layer of asphalt on top of the existing concrete.

The company explained in an online blog post that this resulted in the safety barrier effectively being reduced in height by about 50mm, adding that the decision was taken as a precautionary measure.

The company also said that while it does not meet the terms set out in the original construction specifications, the reduction in the height of the barrier does not break any laws.