News

31 March 2008
THREE DIE ON COUNTRY ROADS DURING WEEKEND

TWO MEN AND A WOMAN died on country roads during the weekend while four others sustained serious injuries in collisions in Dumfries, East Ayrshire and Stirlingshire.

Police forces throughout Scotland carried out a three-day country road awareness weekend that included the two fatal collisions, a number of serious injury collisions           as well as scores of incidents ranging from failed roadside breath tests to excessive speeding.

“The kinds of incidents which occurred during the weekend have only strengthened our resolve to work with the Scottish Government, Road Safety Scotland and other partners to find ways of getting our messages through to drivers – especially those who drink and drive or who fail to drive according to the road conditions,” said Assistant Chief Constable Jim Green, Secretary of the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland’s (ACPOS) Road Policing Business Area.

On Friday evening, 28 March, a three-vehicle road traffic collision occurred on the A711 Dumfries to Dalbeattie Road near Beeswing resulted in a 29-year-old male passenger in one of the vehicles dying at the scene while the 29-year-old male driver of the vehicle sustained serious injury.  The drivers of the two other vehicles sustained minor injuries.

Hours earlier, a fatal crash on the B778 Fenwick to Stewarton Road near the Blairfield Farm in East Ayrshire, involving a BMW Roadster and an East Ayrshire Council Citroen Berlingo, resulted in the drivers of both vehicles – a 40-year-old male and a 40-year-old female respectively – dying from their injuries.  A 51-year-old female passenger in the Citroen Berlingo was airlifted to Glasgow Southern General Hospital with serious injuries.

Later than evening, a 23-year-old male was involved in a collision on the A84 near Callander, resulting in serious injury to his passenger, who remains in intensive care.  The driver failed a roadside breath test and blew 69 on an Intoximeter (35 is the limit).

One 35-year-old Fraserburgh driver was reported for driving with an excessive alcohol reading (nearly three times the limit) with his nine-year-old daughter as a passenger.

Saturday saw a flurry of incidents, including:

• A 23-year-old local male in rural Stirlingshire failed a roadside breath test and was found to be three and a half times over the limit;
• A 39-year-old male lost control of his vehicle whilst negotiating a right-hand bend on the A82 Stirling Road in Dumbarton, collided with a lamp-post and roadside railing and failed a roadside breath test.  He was arrested, provided readings of being more then twice over the limit and will appear in court later in the month;
• Three drivers in Fife were reported for doing over 100 miles-per-hour on country roads including a 17-year-old ASBO recipient, who clocked nearly 110 mph and had his vehicle seized;
• Four Fife drivers were clocked doing 80 in a 60 mph zone with two of them being under 25 years old;
• Near Gretna, a 19-year-old male travelling on the A74 became embroiled in an argument with his passenger and ended up losing control of his Rover, which left the carriageway and came to rest in a ditch.  No one was injured by the driver will be reported for careless driving; and,
• Near Gatehouse of Fleet, a 30-year-old male driver, with no licence, was found to be over the limit.  He was arrested, his vehicle was seized and he was later bailed to appear in Kirkcudbright Sheriff Court later this week.

Sunday included a 24-year-old male who was reported fro driving at speeds between 110 and 120 miles per hour on the A90 near Laurencekirk.  The driver was recorded driving at 115 mph through a coned section of a dual carriageway.

Later that evening, a 20-year-old male was reported fro driving at 97 miles per hour in a 70 mph limit zone on the A96 between Blackburn and Inverurie (which constitutes as a country road at that location).

Reflecting on the weekend campaign, ACC Green said. “ACPOS and the Scottish Police Forces will continue their efforts to prevent loss of life and/or serious injury on Scotland’s roads.  We will be conducting another series of awareness weekends regarding country roads during 2008-09 with the hope that our messages for motorists to remain vigilant on all roads at all times in all conditions and to remember that drink, drugs and speed can affect a driver’s behaviour as well as the road conditions and the vehicle’s roadworthiness.

“Drive according to the road conditions, adjust your speed accordingly and ensure that everybody in your vehicle is wearing a seatbelt.  We don’t want you to become a road traffic statistic – of any kind,”