£2m upgrade to introduce full traffic lights on deadly Raigmore Interchange A9 and A96 roundabout in Inverness, Traffic Scotland confirms
The deadly Raigmore Interchange looks set for a £2m upgrade to transform it into a fully signal-controlled junction - ending decades of campaigning for vital safety improvements.
The busy Inverness roundabout, which brings the A9 and A96 together, has been a notorious traffic bottleneck and accident blackspot for years - with most of the junctions and slip lanes having no traffic-light controlled pedestrian crossings.
In February 2019, grandmother Phoebe Mackenzie (58) sadly died after being struck by a car while crossing one of the interchange’s slip roads which has no lights.
And the speed limit on the roundabout and its approaches was reduced to 30mph in late 2020, in a bid to improve pedestrian safety.
However, the lack of signalised pedestrian crossings on most of the approach roads means it has remained a dangerous prospect for pedestrians and cyclists looking to head between Inverness and the retail park at Eastfield Way, or vice versa.
This lack of a permanent fix for the issues has long been a source of frustration for local campaigners and politicians, with the likes of Highland MSP Rhoda Grant decrying the apparent stalemate as recently as October.
But a new £26m package of Transport Scotland funding for active travel projects across Scotland, which was announced last week, is understood to include around £2m for the vital upgrade of Raigmore Interchange.
And, speaking to The Inverness Courier, Transport Scotland confirmed that once the upgrade is complete “the traffic lights will operate as a fully signalised junction with stop lines on the A9 southbound, A9 northbound, B865, and A96 legs, together with various stop lines around the circulatory carriageway”.
A spokesperson said: ”The proposed installation of traffic signals at the Raigmore Interchange is primarily aimed at promoting pedestrian safety and accessibility.
“The new signal crossings will provide a safer route allowing vulnerable and non-motorised users to safely pass through the interchange and access the amenities to the east and west.
“As part of this upgrade, non-motorised user facilities will also be improved, with pedestrian routes directed through the central island of the roundabout. Consequently, some footways at the northern and southern ends of the roundabout will be realigned or removed to support these changes.
“Once construction is complete, the traffic lights will operate as a fully signalised junction with stop lines on the A9 southbound, A9 northbound, B865, and A96 legs, together with various stop lines around the circulatory carriageway.
“The traffic lights will operate various phases to allow conflicting flows of traffic to be permanently controlled. This will improve safety and allow efficient flow of traffic around the junction, with pedestrian phases operating in conjunction and when the push buttons are activated to satisfy the demand.”
Rhoda Grant, who is a Labour MSP in the Highlands and Islands, said the announcement was welcome, but she wanted to see “spades in the ground”, and vowed to “keep the pressure up” until the work is done.
She said: “I welcome the confirmation of Raigmore Interchange being included in the funding allocation. I have been pushing the Scottish Government and their transport agency Transport Scotland for several years for safety improvements at this dangerous interchange. I want to highlight the important work of local campaigners who have also worked tirelessly to ensure that road safety here is a priority.
“I have had repeated confirmation from Transport Scotland that work has been greenlit, but we need to see spades in the ground. I will keep the pressure up until we see the project completed.
“History has shown that the SNP cannot be trusted on their word with transport infrastructure in the Highlands, so I will continue to scrutinise the work in progress until the long overdue traffic lights are installed.”
Welcoming the news Anne Thomas, who has campaigned for just such improvements as part of the Highland Cycle Campaign, said it had been a long time coming but is very much needed.
She said: “It's been a very long running campaign. It's probably 20 years or so of campaigning on that junction and probably even before my time in Highland Cycle Campaign.
“There's one branch been signalised [at present] and the rest is a bit of a nightmare for active travel.
“Since the [fatal] accident the speed restrictions have come in and I think that has helped a bit, but it's still a major block in active travel from Inverness to the retail park and coming from the Black Isle likewise. Anyone thinking of taking children or teenagers on that route would think twice.
“So I really welcome the improvements. And this sounds like this is the scheme that the council has talked about for a number of years and I know there's been a lot of work on it.”
HiTrans, the Highlands and Islands Transport Partnership, was also approached for comment.
