1000 sign up online to have Dollar Bends redesigned

Iain Robertson • Published 3 Feb 2010 12:58 12 Comments

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A FORMER Alva Academy pupil's campaign to have the dangerous Dollar Bends redesigned has been backed by over 1000 people, including local politicians.

Eighteen-year-old Scott Baxter was left shocked when friend Grant Dowie, from Dollar, was fatally injured in a car collision on the infamous stretch of the A91.

And the impact of that loss moved Scott to set up a petition and Facebook group supporting changes to a section of road that has been the scene of a number of fatal accidents in recent years.

He told the Advertiser, "I went to school with Grant Dowie - it was shocking for me as I knew him well."

Scott said that since that tragedy his mum won't drive between Tillicoultry and Dollar after 8pm, and there are others who have told him they feel the same way. He hopes the petition can change that.

Scott said, "There has been a really good response to the petition. It's only been up for a few days, but hundreds are signing up.

"I want to raise awareness of the situation. I'm not asking for a complete redesign but I want to get the most dangerous bends straightened."

His campaign is being backed by Conservative MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Liz Smith.

She said, "Both I and our Ochil and South Perthshire, Westminster Conservative Candidate, Gerald Michaluk, will sign the petition and this will also be supported by the Clackmannanshire Conservatives."

The Holyrood politician recently wrote to Clackmannanshire Council to ask if it was possible to have a further road review carried out on the Dollar Bends.

She added, "In particular, I wanted to investigate the possibility of better signage at the most dangerous spots and also a review of lane markings.

"I am delighted the council has agreed to this and I'm also pleased to lend my full support to the public petition campaign."

Councillor Eddie Carrick, Sustainability Portfolio Holder, said, "The council has recently surveyed signs and lining on the A91 between Tillicoultry and Dollar and is currently assessing what amendments can be made to these to improve road safety.

"These improvements will be made within the next few months.

"Longer term plans to upgrade sections of the A91 east of Tillicoultry are in the council's plans for the future."

Scott is delighted people realise the danger this road poses and said he would like to see improved lighting, as well as fencing put up to stop deer running on to the road.

The Glasgow Caledonian University student says too many drivers are taking too many risks on this road, and believes this has to be stopped if future tragedies are to be avoided.

Westminster Conservative candidate Gerald Michaluk agreed, adding, "I am delighted to support this petition.

"There are more accidents and fatalities on Scotland's rural roads than there are on the main trunk roads and in towns and cities and that can sometimes be the result of drivers being unaware of the hidden dangers on rural routes.

"For a few, irresponsible drivers this type of road often means the opportunity to risk driving at speed and without due care because they think it is less likely they will be picked up by police patrols.

"This makes rural routes doubly dangerous so it is very good to see a public petition being well supported."

Have your say. Post a comment on this article.

Bryce Crawford
Unregistered User
Feb 3, 22:06
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I wholeheartedly agre with the proposal to have the Dollar Bends redesigned. Over 60 years ago I lost a school friend on these same bends, His name was Alan Philp. Please add my name to the petition

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OmG
Unregistered User
Feb 4, 08:26
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I'm afraid I am opposed to the idea.

The Dollar bends have been there for centuries, considering the amount of traffic using the road when weighed against the number of accidents over the period does not justify yet another rural vandalism solution.

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Bill
Unregistered User
Feb 4, 14:35
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I agree with OmG. I have driven on this road for twenty plus years and I respect the road for what it is. I know there are areas where corners are cut and other drivers attempt to over take. This is done all the time and I would guess more so at night. It is very unfortunate that people have died on this particular stretch of the A91, more so when they are young. If there are parts of the road straightened then that in itself will cause more drivers to speed up as is well know on the Tilly to Alva straights.

Yes, by all means put up clearer signage indicating the curverature of the bends but at the end of the day, drivers who want to speed and take the bends at silly speeds greater than the it will allow only have themselves to blame.

Though there is one other comment I would like to make and that can't be fixed by the council. When driving towards Tilly on a late winter afternoon the sun is very low and in some places if it has been raining makes it very difficult to see the lines that split the carrageway.

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Colin Aitchison
Unregistered User
Feb 4, 21:10
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I live very local to the Dollar bends and have been driving for 25 years all over Scotland, my opinion is that the Dollar bends are no more dangerous than any other set of bends, its only the drivers that give the Dollar bends a bad name. I have driven to the maximum permitted speed limit on the bends and have never had any problems but I do have friends that have lost it and it was down to there own driving error.

Maybe we should be looking at the road surface and its condition, at one point there is a 100mm hump on the white line in the middle of the road

4 bends after coming out of Dollar, what about

the large metal manhole lid 3 bends on the Tillicoultry side of Taits Tomb, at present moment there are road works on the bends on the Dollar side of Taits Tomb traffic cones are placed next to the kerb on the road to mark a hole in the road which in-turn pushes you out over the white lines on a left handed bend in to on-coming traffic, this is at the road end down to the black bridge over the river Devon, I would not like to be the person who set up that set of cones, or what about the drivers that only drive at 30- 40mph and brake on every bend, we have all been there and have got many stories to tell,

to conclude the Dollar Bends are just fine the way they are but they do require some attention to the road surface at many points.

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Alloa Resident
Unregistered User
Feb 5, 22:35
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To the latter three out of four people who oppose this I ask you this "would you really feel this way perhaps if you had lost someone close" I think not!!

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******
Feb 5, 23:24
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******
Feb 5, 23:26
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JGB
Unregistered User
Feb 5, 23:30
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The road isn't to blame for the fatalities on the bends. No road is dangerous, its a minority of drivers who make it dangerous for the majority!

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Dollar Resident
Unregistered User
Feb 12, 11:25
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Having known Grant Dowie 13 years I can understand where all the comments are coming from but it is not the road to blame. I have to dive on that road every night goint towards Alloa and the amount of Boy Racers on the road is unbelievable and what makes it worse they are mainly young ones who have just got their licence. The girls are worse for cutting the corners and racing other cars. Put their insurance up so they cannot afford to own a car or put the age of getting a licence up until 25 years og age. It will never stop some smart idiot racing on that road.

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Dollar Resident
Unregistered User
Feb 12, 11:28
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Having known Grant Dowie 13 years I can understand where all the comments are coming from but it is not the road to blame. I have to drive on that road every night going towards Alloa and the amount of Boy Racers on the road is unbelievable and what makes it worse they are mainly young ones who have just got their licence. The girls are worse for cutting the corners and racing other cars. Put their insurance up so they cannot afford to own a car or put the age of getting a licence up until 25 years og age. It will never stop some smart idiot racing on that road. I blame the drivers and not the road for all the fatalities, what about the innocent drivers of the other cars who get badly hurt through no fault of their own

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Colin Aitchison
Unregistered User
Feb 26, 23:06
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In reply to comment made by Alloa Resident

I am very sorry for your loss and I respect your

comment and fully under stand why you have replied in this manner but if your thoughts were applied to all Scottish roads there would only be straight roads or bend with 20mph speed limits or speed humps this would not benefit any road user.

To move on, is there a cost for the changes to the dollar bend to make them safer and is it in the public domain, I think signage would not help in any way as most of the accidents are local peoplerngoing about there daily business or has alreadyrnbeen mentioned driver error or/and speed.

I do not like going up against 1000's people but it would look like the comments on this website those 1000's of people are in the minority in the comments on this website.

If there is a council or public meeting about the

Dollar bends I would like very much like to attend.

I would like to end by apologizing for any of my comments that may have offended any one

who has lost some one close to them on any road

anywhere.

PS. Yes I have lost some one close at a junction on to the A91 but not on the road between Tillicoultry and Dollar.

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Colin Aitchison
Unregistered User
Feb 26, 23:15
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In reply to comment made by Alloa Resident

I am very sorry for your loss and I respect your

comment and fully under stand why you have replied in this manner but if your thoughts were applied to all Scottish roads there would only be straight roads or bend with 20mph speed limits or speed humps this would not benefit any road user.

To move on, is there a cost for the changes to the dollar bend to make them safer and is it in the public domain, I think signage would not help in any way as most of the accidents are local peoplerngoing about there daily business or has alreadyrnbeen mentioned driver error or/and speed.

I do not like going up against 1000's people but it would look like the comments on this website those 1000's of people are in the minority in the comments on this website.

If there is a council or public meeting about the

Dollar bends I would like very much like to attend.

I would like to end by apologizing for any of my comments that may have offended any one

who has lost some one close to them on any road

anywhere.

PS. Yes I have lost some one close at a junction on to the A91 but not on the road between Tillicoultry and Dollar.

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Craig
Unregistered User
Apr 30, 16:26
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Eighteen-year-old Scott Baxter was left shocked when friend Grant Dowie, from Dollar, was fatally injured in a car collision on the infamous stretch of the A91.

How can you be fatally injured? No disrespect to the guy only to the person who wrote this....i'd have thought you'd be killed in a fatal accident or injured surely not fatally injured...hmmm.

I don't think the road needs redesigned. I don't think it's a particularly dangerous road either. Roads aren't dangerous only the people that drive them. That said, i see no reason as to why an able driver cannot maintain a reasonable speed or around 50mph on this road. If people don't feel confident enough to drive their car which they have been trusted to do so by the authroities then why should they be allowed to drive at all? I've seen countless times on this road a collision almost happening because of people going too slow. As we've established it's a very bendy road and the last thing you want it to be coming around a corner at a decent speed only to almost run into the back of some pensioner sitting under 30mph. On the other hand, i've also seen many people going too fast and losing control, spinning off into the other side of the road or into the trees.

As far as i'm concerned it's not the road that needs to be redesigned but rather people's attitudes and the way they drive.

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David Louden
Unregistered User
Jun 21, 20:42
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I haved lived on the Dollar bends for ten years now and every year without exception I have been on the scene pulling people out of wrecked cars on this stretch of road. Something must be done to make this section of road safer not only for divers but for pedestrians who have to alk along the footpath to access the Devon way. Straightening the road and having the same problems as the Tilly to Alva section of the A91 is not the answer. I take the view that reducing the speed limit to 40 MPH on the section from Dollar to Tait's tomb and then 50MPH to Tillicoultry coupled with double white lines would make the road much safer and would ensure that the average speed is reduced. This won,t stop the boy/girl racers that task has to fall to the Police to enforce

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