Notorious Section of Ferry Pavement to be Renewed

I am pleased to report that another notorious section of rutted and cracked pavement on Brook Street is to be upgraded in early February. This is the section that runs on the south side of Brook Street between Gray Street and the Bruach Bar and Restaurant.

Work to upgrade this stretch of pavement is programmed to commence on Monday 3rd February 2014, and will last for approximately 2 weeks. The Contractor for the works is Tayside Contracts.

I complained to the Council about the 'crazy paving' on the stretch of footway outside the Grain Store and Hosie's Electrical shop in Autumn 2012 and suggested that it was an accident waiting to happen.

In Septmber 2013, I responded to the planned pavement upgrading in Gray Street by commenting that this was 100 yards better but that there was miles to go upgrading cracked and uneven pavements in The Ferry.

While this next phase of pavement reconstruction work is undertaken, the following temporary traffic restrictions will apply:

• In the interest of public safety, a lane closure will be implemented and westbound traffic will be diverted via St Vincent Street, King Street and Gray Street for the duration of the works. 
• The works will be carried out in sections, so that at least one area will be kept available for taxi parking adjacent to the works. Parking will still be allowed on the north side of Brook Street. 
• Access to car parks within this area will be maintained, and vehicular, delivery access will be maintained to properties, although we ask for vehicular traffic movements to be kept to a minimum where possible.
• Some minor delays may be encountered during some phases of the works.

If you have any queries regarding the traffic restrictions, please contact Mr L Grubb, Senior Engineer, Roads Maintenance Partnership, by telephoning 01382 434000.

Cyclists and Pedestrians Need to Show Mutual Consideration on Shared Coastal Pathway

Diverse traffic on the coastal pathway
 at Grassy Beach - click to enlarge

I think many of my constituents are aware that I enjoy walking along the coastal pathway between Douglas Terrace and the Stannergate. Most days I take our dog Milli for a walk along this pathway. Milli enjoys chasing a ball on the beach and a swim off the slipway at Grassy Beach. On my walks, I usually encounter other dog walkers, joggers, folk out with children in the buggy, walkers, drivers of mobility scooters and of course cyclists; all of whom have the right to use this pathway.

Some walkers I have encountered resent the presence of cyclist using the pathway. I usually point out that it was the charity Sustainable Transport (Sustrans) which made substantial grants towards the upgrading of each of the sections of the pathway so that that it could remain open. The walkers accept that if this was the price of retaining the pathway so be it. 

But several walkers have expressed their concern that the mixed modes of human traffic sharing this pathway is 
"an accident waiting to happen". 
They point out how frightening it can be when a cyclists comes up behind them and passes them at speed. But it's not just the cyclists who may offend other path users. I sometimes witness dogs running out of control and in front of cyclists. I have also seen walkers and joggers engrossed in their music and unaware of other traffic on the route.

So the issue I want to raise is the need for all those who use this pathway to show more consideration to each other. This means cyclists ensuring they have a bell or other warning device and make use of this as they approach pedestrians up ahead. It also means that they should moderate their speed when approaching walkers especially when the pedestrians are blind sided.  For walkers it means their avoiding getting engrossed with their music or their conversation so that they don't step out in front of an approaching bike. Dog walkers should also try to keep their dogs under control and clear up their dog's mess and dispose of this in the bins provided.

I have also written to the Head of Transportation to see whether the walkway hard surface might be divided into two lanes; one for pedestrians and one for cyclists. I am hoping this may be possible when the final section of the pathway is rebuilt later this financial year and the pathway has a more uniform width.

Good and Bad News from Scotrail for Train Services from Broughty Ferry Station

There was good and bad news about the rail services to and from Broughty Ferry station earlier this week. Would you like the good or bad news first?

Last September, I welcomed the announcement about improvements to the schedule of trains that were to be stopping at Broughty Ferry Station when the then new national rail timetable was coming into force on Sunday 11 December 2011. This included four more trains a day going south and three more trains a day heading north. These improvements were introduced on a pilot basis to be evaluated in 2012.

The good news is that from Sunday 9 December 2012, one further train a day will stop at Broughty Ferry in both directions. This afternoon service will help fill one of the gaps in the current timetable.

The bad news is that ScotlRail will not be delivering an hourly timetable of stopping trains at Broughty Ferry on the Aberdeen to Glasgow and Glasgow to Aberdeen route. There will continue to be long gaps between services and it will remain difficult, if not impossible to commute into Dundee from The Ferry unless you have unusual working hours.

I have been saving this for last. The best news is most definitely that the pilot programme of improved stopping trains at Broughty Ferry has been judged a success on the basis of growing passenger numbers. So our rail services in The Ferry are no longer a pilot programme. In other words, we are no longer under threat of returning to a station with virtually no train services. For that we have to thank all those passengers who have voted with their feet and let the train take the strain.

Finally, I shall continue to press for a comprehensive timetable of stopping trains at our station. This makes sense environmentally and practically.