Calls for investment after figures on A-roads that are dual carriageway
Only four areas in Glasgow and the west have more than a quarter dualled
Last updated 13th Nov 2023
Fewer than half of A-roads in Glasgow have been upgraded to dual-carriageways but the city is way ahead of most local authority areas across west central Scotland according to figures from the Department for Transport (DfT),
In Glasgow 44.4% percent of roads are dual-carriageway, putting it second in the table behind Aberdeen where almost 6 out of 10 have been upgraded.
The AA said converting single-carriageway A-roads into dual-carriageways can "improve traffic flows and air quality whilst reducing collisions".
The figure reduces massively for local authorities made up of predominantly rural areas.
Minor A-roads are the responsibility of local authorities, while major A-roads are managed byTraffic Scotland.
In East Dunbartonshire, which includes Bearsden, Milngavie and Kirkintilloch, just under 5% have two lanes, and in Argyll and Bute it is 0.1%
- Glasgow 44.4%
- West Dunbartonshire 39.0%
- North Lanarkshire 30.1%
- Inverclyde 28.5%
- East Renfrewshire 21.9%
- South Ayrshire 13.8%
- North Ayrshire 12.9%
- South Lanarkshire 11.3%
- East Ayrshire 11.2%
- East Dunbartonshire 4.9%
- Stirling 4.8%
- Dumfries and Galloway 1%
- Argyll & Bute 0.1%
The proportion of A-road miles that are dual-carriageway across Britain barely changed in a decade, from 17% in 2012 to 18% in 2022.
Safety arguments for dual-carriageways
Dual-carriageways have been found to improve safety and reduce congestion compared with single-carriageway roads.
Their extra lanes and the barrier between vehicles travelling in opposite directions make it much easier and safer for slower traffic to be overtaken.
Speed limits on dual-carriageways are up to 70mph, whereas on single-carriageway roads they can be no more than 60mph.
AA president Edmund King said: "The dualling of key A-roads greatly enhances connectivity and indeed road safety.
"Improving unsafe, congested, single-carriageway roads and building essential bypasses can improve traffic flows and air quality whilst reducing collisions.
Steve Gooding, director of motoring research charity the RAC Foundation, said: "For a whole array of financial and environmental reasons, it is implausible to think that we'll see a large-scale initiative anytime soon to dual our single-carriageway A-roads.
"A more practical and cost-effective answer to improving safety on A-roads is probably to 'engineer out' identified problems and hazards rather than try to upgrade hundreds of miles of routes, with all that entails."
Campaign to upgrade key route to Northern Ireland
Demands to dual the whole of the A75 in Dumfries and Galloway - connecting Gretna Green to Stranraer - date back at least two decades.
A report commissioned by three local authorities earlier this year found dualling the A75 and the A77 between Stranraer and Ayr - which passes Cairnryan ferry port - would bring nearly £5 billion of "positive benefits" to the UK economy.
READ MORE: The difference a dual-carriageway would make
The UK Government has pledged to provide funding to upgrade the A75 using money saved by downscaling HS2, although powers over the road rest with the devolved Scottish Government.