Safety fears as cycle route left to crumble
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Cyclists are demanding action over the state of a national cycle route they claim is forcing them to use the busy A9 as the only alternative.
And they fear if nothing is done now, the bill for repairing the section of Route 7 over the Drumochter Pass will be substantial.
The 18-mile stretch between Dalwhinnie and Calvine is part of the Inverness to Glasgow route and should also provide a safe option for the thousands of people riding Land’s End to John O’Groats each year.
But users of the Sustrans cycle track, which is maintained by Scotland Transerv on behalf of Transport Scotland, say it is in such a bad condition that repairs are urgently needed.
John Burns, of Aviemore, uses the track on a fairly regular basis and has contacted his MSP Dave Thomson, who wants to see the maintenance issues resolved.
Mr Burns (44) told Active Outdoors: “I’ve cycled the route a few times and read about other people trying to get something done about the path but they’re not really doing anything about it.
“The path is fantastic where they’ve built the new section of dual carriageway at Crubenmore, but then you go from that onto the old bit that’s covered in dirt and gravel, overgrown by weeds and in a terrible state.
“This spring they resurfaced a three-mile stretch but since then they’ve added gravel at the sides for drainage and it’s now strewn across the path. It’s obviously been done by somebody who’s never been on a bike before.
“The trouble is, if they don’t maintain it, it’s just going to get worse and it will cost much more to fix it.”
Mr Burns, a software engineer in the oil industry, said the problem is much worse for heavily laden touring cyclists.
“The biggest problem is the grit on the path – you couldn’t take a conventional road bike on the path the way it is now,” he said. “That means all the cyclists doing Land’s End to John O’Groats have two alternatives, the A82 or the A9.
“You see it when you travel on the A9, lots of cyclists using the road. Even at Slochd, where there is a good path, cyclists use the A9 as they don’t know the path is there.
“If tourists use that path, they won’t use it again, so it’s also putting off visitors to the area.”
Sustrans’ own website acknowledges there are problems with the cycle track and it is understood staff at its Edinburgh headquarters are frustrated with the lack of maintenance on this important Highland route.
The Scottish Route Development page at www.sustrans.org.uk states: “The path does have some surface issues, but is easily passable along its whole length with a mountain bike or hybrid.
“Two kilometres of the path over the Drumochter Pass were resurfaced with bitmac in summer 2011 by Transport Scotland’s contractors.
“This still leaves several kilometres of path that could do with an upgrade and some sections are not ideal for bikes with narrow tyres.
“The alternative is the A9, which has fairly good sight lines, but is a fast road with heavy traffic, including many buses and HGVs.
“If speed is your priority, rather than enjoyment, then you could use the A9, although Sustrans and Transport Scotland do not recommend this.”
Dave Thompson, MSP for Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch, said he had been approached by constituents regarding the state of cycle facilities in his constituency, and in particular the cycle track constructed parallel to the A9 through the Drumochter Pass and beyond.
He has asked Transport Scotland to investigate the poor state of this track that was opened to some fanfare at the time of the Millennium.
Mr Thompson said: “There is no logic to spending considerable capital sums investing in cycling facilities if there is little or no financial provision for maintenance and cleaning.
“We must invest in such facilities as they provide far-reaching tourist, health, congestion and environmental benefits, and money must also be allocated for ongoing support, or the tracks will quickly become unusable.
“This logic is generally accepted by the Scottish Government. I think the reason the problem has arisen is because the responsibility has fallen between agencies like Transport Scotland, Sustrans and the relevant local authorities. I trust that this deficit will be addressed in the very near term.”
Nobody from Transport Scotland or Transerv responded to requests for comment.
John Lauder, director of Sustrans Scotland, said: “Sustrans has raised the matter of poor maintenance of the A9 path with Transport Scotland over many years but to no avail.
“We are frustrated by the failure of the contractors to properly maintain what should be a stand-out section of the National Cycle Network in Scotland.
“Sustrans maintains over 300 miles of the NCN in Scotland to a high standard and would be happy to provide cover on this section, but we are told this remains the job of Transport Scotland and their maintenance contractors.
“They need to live up to their obligations.”
