Chaos follows road accident on A72

Published 4 Jun 2010 11:15 0 Comments

POLICE have been criticised after a road smash near Cardrona caused traffic chaos - after witnesses claim they only remembered to close the road in one direction.

The accident happened after a 32-year-old local woman lost control of her Nissan Almera near Dirtpot Corner and hit an oncoming scooter driver last Sunday at 12.45pm.

The male scooter driver, 47, was taken by ambulance to the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary and although his condition is serious his injuries are not thought to be life threatening.

The female driver was unhurt.

After the collision huge tailbacks began to build along the A72 from the accident scene South after eyewitnesses suggested that police officers only remembered to close the road in one direction.

Officers shut the road North of the accident and traffic was re-directed along the B709, but motorists travelling towards Peebles say they were given no warning as to the chaos that lay ahead.

Queues were reported to wind back as far as Innerleithen - four miles from the accident spot.

And to further compound the mayhem it was one of the busiest weekends of the year in the area, as visitors flocked to an international mountain bike race in Innerleithen and the annual Medieval Fayre at Traquair.

The B709 was the only route into either event - the same road that traffic was diverted onto.

One driver told the Peeblesshire News: "I was trying to get from Walkerburn to Edinburgh.

"As soon as I got to Innerleithen High Street I realised something was wrong as the traffic was solid, with cars nose to bumper as far as I could see.

"There were no police around to let us know what was happening so we were all just stuck.

"I sat for over 30 minutes before doubling back on myself and taking the B709 - only to find myself dodging mountain bikers and the cattle trucks used to transport their gear.

"It was absolute bedlam and as far as I could see there were no police around to control the situation."

However, a spokesperson for Lothian and Borders Police denied the claims.

"We were alerted to the incident at 12.45pm, and officers on the scene closed the road North of the accident near Cardrona at 1.20pm and south of the incident at 1.32pm. Officers dealt with the incident as quickly and efficiently as was possible."

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