Botched Dingwall road repairs will not be addressed by Highland Council until spring despite safety fears
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THE botched repair works to relay the main road into Dingwall will not now be redone before next spring despite safety fears being voiced.
Local councillor Margaret Patterson spoke out about the state of the Station Road after the surface was cut up just months after being put down.
Residents were left puzzled because the work undid repairs to potholes that were completed just weeks before the new treatment which overlaid that work.
Making matters worse, long promised work to remedy the severely damaged road surface on Tulloch Street in the market town has been delayed.
Originally pencilled in to be completed in September, the contract for the work in the heart of the town is only now going out to tender.
Cllr Graham Mackenzie has lashed out at communication issues saying that promises must be kept to retain the public’s confidence.
“You can accept the lack of resources, you can understand the lack of manpower, you can get the lack of finance but you can’ accept promises being made and then seeing the public let down when they don’t materialise,” he said.
“It must be a year since we were told that Tulloch Street was a priority and would be done let down is just unacceptable entirely. That is what we, the councillors, have been telling people because that is what we have been told.
“It has got to the point that we will be requiring monthly updates on the capital programme to find out what has been done and if something hasn’t been done then why hasn’t been done.”
Cllr Paterson strongly agreed saying that she feels that she had “let people down” because she was not told the work on Tulloch Street was only now going out to tender when it was to have started last month.
She said: “I have been fighting for Tulloch Street and I told the community council that it would be done in the next few weeks because that is what council officers told me.
“I feel like I have been treated really badly because it is my job to tell people what the council are going to be doing so when something like this happens I can’t help but feel disappointed – that road is falling apart on Tulloch Street and it is now only being put out to tender.”
Neither councillor was content with the state of the road out of the town towards Maryburgh with Cllr Mackenzie saying “that one was the council’s fault” while Cllr Paterson said she fears for the safety of those using it.
She said: “I am deeply disappointed. It is a very busy road that is used all the time and especially with the Mart there too. People are finding it really difficult with no markings on the turn off to the mart while the road surface has been corrupted.
“I do fear for safety on that part of the road first because there are no road markings and secondly because of the state of the road.”
Mrs Paterson had previously asked for the work to be redone before the winter but a council spokeswoman confirmed “the failed section of surface dressing will be undertaken next summer.”
Commenting on Tulloch Street a council spokeswoman said: “There has been some slippage in our capital programme. This is due to having to both planned and unplanned works. Tulloch Street works are now being put out to tender.”
