The North East Sustainable Transport coalition has claimed work to make the case for dualling the A1 is a “waste of money” that could be a “distraction that will cost many more lives”. The campaign organisation say the dualling of the road in Northumberland will “most likely never happen” and said officials should concentrate on wider safety improvements such as average speed cameras.
The county council has confirmed officers will work on building up an evidence base for the road to be dualled after a string of serious accidents that has seen eight people killed since the start of the year, including six in just over a month. This has reignited calls for the road to be dualled after the government abandoned plans to do so in 2024.
Letter about safety
In a letter to MPs David Smith and Joe Morris, councillors Scott Dickinson, Glen Sanderson and Colin Ferguson as well as North East Mayor Kim McGuinness, the coalition said that nobody had been able to make a viable case for the scheme to go ahead.
The letter read: “The loss of eight lives on the A1 in Northumberland this year is both tragic and unacceptable. No one should be killed or seriously injured while travelling.
“This is not an isolated issue, however. Northumberland has a serious road safety problem. Between 2021 and 2025, over 800 people were killed or seriously injured in road traffic collisions in the county.
“This needs to be addressed now across the whole county, not in ten years’ time or for only 50 of the more than 3000 miles of roads in Northumberland.
“We are concerned that many Northumberland politicians are creating the impression that dualling alone can solve safety issues on the A1 and save the Northumberland economy. If dualling were that good it would have been done already.
“The recent announcement that council officers will be working on the case for dualling is at best a waste of money, and at worst a distraction that will cost many more lives. This scheme was assessed and reassessed for over a decade under the last Conservative government and still no one has been able to make a viable case that it should go ahead.
“The only choice is between wasting more time continuing to talk about something that most likely will never happen or taking immediate practical action to address the very real safety issues affecting residents across Northumberland.”
The letter states that speed limits based on “safe system” principles should be implemented to reduce the severity of collisions, while average speed cameras should be installed for “widespread enforcement” of speed limits. There are also calls for safer crossings and safe cycling facilities, pointing out that a fifth of those killed or seriously injured are pedestrians.
The letter adds: “These could be implemented right across Northumberland within a few years for a fraction of the billions that would be needed to fully dual the A1. Doing so would save far more lives, be better for the environment, and the money saved could be used for projects that – unlike A1 dualling, which National Highways judged to be poor value for money – would create a positive return for the local economy.”
Figures from the North East Regional Road Safety Resource shows that there have been 72 deaths on Northumberland’s roads between the start of 2021 and the end of May. There have also been 773 serious injuries.
The fatalities figure includes nine pedestrians, but no cyclists. 104 pedestrians were seriously injured alongside 70 cyclists.
The A1 accounts for 10 of these fatalities (13.8%) and 70 of the serious accidents (9.1%). Northumberland has over 3,200 miles of roads, of which the A1 from Seaton Burn to the Scottish Border accounts for about 60 miles, or around 1.9%.
Three pedestrians were killed on the road and one seriously injured. In terms of cyclists, there was one serious injury.
Response from the council
Responding to the letter, Northumberland County Council leader Coun Glen Sanderson said: “I always respect other people’s opinions. I am sure the points are perfectly reasonable, but we do believe that ultimately, the way to make the A1 the appropriate road for its purpose is to ensure that it is up to the same standard as the rest of the A1 from London to Morpeth.
“It is not until you get to Northumberland that you have this mix of dual and single carriageway which is not safe and fundamentally unsuitable for the traffic it now carries and the growth we have seen in Northumberland.
“Any other minor works are worthy of consideration, but as far as I’m concerned, the only way to make that road safe is to make it dual carriageway all the way.
“When the campaign began, the levels of traffic were not there same as we see today. As a result of the traffic, cars stop and it is congested.
“It is forcing drivers to use routes that have their own safety issues and use villages as rat runs. I can’t imagine what things will be like in five to ten years – this is simply not sustainable.”
A spokeswoman for the North East Strategic Mayoral Authority added: “Any death or serious injury on our roads is one too many. We continue to support measures to make our region’s roads better for all, including a programme of £129.5 million on safer walking and cycling schemes across the North East.
“Upgrading the A1 is recognised in our Local Transport Plan as a key regional transport priority both to make it safer and to grow the economy, but that would be a Government decision as it is part of the national road network. The Mayor recently wrote to the Secretary of State for Transport with Cllr Glen Sanderson, Leader of Northumberland County Council to make the case for a dual carriageway where there is not yet one.”
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