'Accidents waiting to happen' on Dumfries and Galloway roads

Roads in parts of Dumfries and Galloway are so neglected, a fatal accident is waiting to happen.

That's the view of residents in the area who point to particular problems on the B740 which connects the village of Sanquhar to the M74.

Locals say it's riddled with dangerous potholes and defects, with no warning signs that the road surface is uneven. 

Local Jill Robertson said, "The road has got worse over the years. It's appalling the number of potholes that have come into it, and the water that's on it. The number of people that were getting punctures. And it's just not one puncture, it's two punctures in a car.

"There were four the other day. They can't get mobile signal, so they have to come and get a mobile phone signal from us."

Mrs Robertson says the lack of action from local government means they feel forgotten.

"The council do not come," she said. "Well, they come and drive up. But I don't know what they've been doing. They just seem to drive up, tick a box and then go back down."

The B740 is frequently used by lorries as a shortcut to the motorway - which increases the wear on the road's surface and, according to locals, makes this route even more perilous.

Campbell Seaton, who also lives on the route said, "We've lost a stone dyke wall. We had a large twenty-ton truck careering into that last year. It still remains unfixed. If someone had been in the garden they would have died.

"There's been a lot of incidents where cars have been forced off the road because the road isn't wide enough for two vehicles to pass. There's no signage. There's nothing to slow people down or to warn people just how bad the road is."Adverse weather has been making the situation worse. During one of last year's storms part of the road's embankment collapsed.

Mr Seaton added, "It's just not been repaired. So now we have temporary traffic lights on that section of the road. And those temporary traffic lights have been there for a year.

"Sometimes they don't work, so you can end up with a section where the road is now restricted because of the damage. We have two cars going along that section because the traffic lights aren't always in operation."In a statement, Dumfries and Galloway Council said, "Due to the current number of defects across the regional road network, all repairs in D&G are being prioritised by classification of road and the severity of defect.

"Repair works on the B740 are scheduled for the week commencing 13 February. Further investigation and design works are required to rectify the two locations of verge slips."But Mr Seaton added, "It's all about prevention. Surely it's much better to try and fix the problem when the problem is there, rather than wait for an event as a fatality.And it will happen. It definitely will happen on this road."