Drivers face a speeding crackdown across rural Scotland as a boom in motoring holidays causes traffic chaos on the country’s roads.
Police Scotland has announced it will deploy “unprecedented” numbers of traffic officers across the north of the country this holiday season amid fears some heavily marketed tourist routes are turning into race tracks.
Road safety authorities have also said they will put new speed cameras on stretches of the A82 and A85 where they say one in three motorists is breaking the limit.
There have long been concerns that the popularity of routes such as the North Coast 500 (NC500) was attracting a dangerous mix of both speeders – some behind the wheels of supercars – and slower-moving camper vans and cyclists.
Some locals have started referring to the NC500 as the Indy 500 because of the “petrol-heads” on the route, including those trying to complete the 516-mile circuit to and from Inverness via Applecross, Durness and Wick in under 24 hours.
But they are also frustrated by visitors who stop their cars to take photographs, blocking the sometimes narrow roads.
Cheaper ferries and a blitz of publicity has seen Scotland become a major destination for motorists in recent years.
VisitScotland and other agencies, after the “success” of the NC500, have come up with a range of new long-distance driving tours, including the Snow Roads in the Cairngorms, the Argyll Coast Route and the Galloway Tourist Route.
Chief Inspector Stewart Mackie said: “The concerns that are reported in respect of driver behaviour are replicated across roads in the Highland region as we see an increase in visitors.
“Our main priority is to keep our roads safe and we all have a part to play in that. Road safety operations are regularly carried out across the region in response to community concerns, which include high visibility patrols with enforcement action taken where necessary.
“I would always ask people to ride or drive safely with consideration
for other road users and we are continually campaigning to improve safety, including supporting the keep left campaign to remind tourists to drive on the left.”
Earlier officers in the Highlands responded to concerns from local councillors with a pledge to make sure motorists would see traffic patrols - something that was once almost unheard-of on what would have been quiet rural roads.
Chief Superintendent George MacDonald said: “We have committed 1,300 hours to police visibility on the A832, A835 and A836. I come from the north Highlands and it would be an exceptional occurrence to see a roads policing vehicle.
“The feedback I’m getting from my family now is that it’s a weekly occurrence. We are putting a huge amount of energy into roads that are very busy”.
Police stressed they are also increasing patrols on the A82 and A9 which respectively link Glasgow and Perth with Inverness.
Roads policing Inspector Neil Lumsden said: “The North Coast 500 has undoubtedly led to a welcome increase in visitors to the area and we want to ensure that people - both tourists and locals alike - can enjoy these roads safely.
“Regular marked and unmarked patrols were carried out on the roads of the North Coast 500 with more than 1,300 hours of dedicated road policing activity in the last year.
“This is as a direct response to priorities set for us by our communities who regularly highlight road safety as a key issue.
“Substantial activity has also been ongoing on other key routes, including almost 4,000 hours of patrol on the A82 and in excess of 4,300 on the A9 in the Highland area.”
Some communities irritated by drivers who do not understand rural roads have take their own action. The people of Mull last year produced a short YouTube video to tell visitors how to drive on single tracks.
The NC500 alone is thought to have lured 29,000 tourists north since it opened in 2015. However, a study published earlier this year found residents had a negative impression of the route. Its author cited an increase “antagonistic encounters between residents and tourists”.
There are growing wider concerns about overtourism in parts of Scotland, including islands like Mull and Skye and Edinburgh. The capital was this week named alongside Barcelona and Venice as a destination struggling to cope with mass visitors.
The Scottish Road Safety Camera Partnership this week announced new speed traps between Tyndrum on the A82 and the Lix Toll near Lochearnhead on the A85.
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