Trunk Road Maintenance
11 December 2001

NEW TRANSPORT MINISTER URGED TO RESTORE CONFIDENCE
 IN TRUNK ROAD MAINTENANCE

The Highland Council Convener David Green has urged the new Scottish Executive Minister for Transport, Wendy Alexander, to restore the confidence of the Highland travelling public in the trunk road winter maintenance service, which he says is at an "all time low".

Councillor Green wants the Minister, who also has responsibility for enterprise and lifelong learning, to take a personal interest in the issue and significantly enhance the specification of the contract awarded to private contractor, BEAR Scotland to greatly improve the service.

Councillor Green wrote on several occasions to Ms Alexander's predecessor, Sarah Boyack, to highlight the publics dissatisfaction with BEAR's response to the first snows of winter early last month. In a letter to the new Minister, he said: "Winter maintenance is a lifeline service for all Highland communities, given our unavoidable dependence on roads, and there is a long-standing expectation of an efficient and safe service upon which people can depend.

"There is ongoing concern about both the capability of BEAR the new contractor to cope with Highland winters, and also the adequacy of the trunk road contract specifications to meet winter conditions in the Highlands.  "The clock is ticking with winter upon us and, from many accounts around the Highlands, I am not at all reassured that the lessons of the first fall of snow on 8 November have been learned. I would welcome the opportunity to meet with you and discuss this matter in more detail.  "I would be most grateful if you would take a personal interest in this matter.

We owe it to the people of the Highlands to restore their confidence in the
trunk road winter maintenance service, which appears to myself and many others
in the Highlands to be at an all time low."