A MAJOR CRACKDOWN on bad driving along one of Scotland’s busiest routes is now under way with police pledging to filter out the worst offenders.
Linking Inverness and Aberdeen and passing through the heart of Moray, the A96 has a reputation as being one of Scotland’s most notorious roads.
Now a joint operation involving the trunk roads policing unit and officers from the Highlands and Islands and Aberdeenshire and Moray divisions aims to hit back at speeding, driving while under the influence of drink and drugs and all instances of careless or bad driving along the entire 100-mile route.
Road policing officer Sergeant Steven Manson said: “A lot of fatal accidents we go to involve inappropriate driving and driving at speed and drivers not really being aware of what is happening around them.
“If we do a speed check we will generally catch people speeding – we get speeds of up to 100mph quite regularly. I don’t know whether it is complacency on the road or what the reason behind it is.”
Last week motorists in Elgin took part in a Transport Scotland probe into driving habits, spending an hour studying video of various road scenarios and giving their views on what actions they might take in given situations.
Participants drawn from all age groups where asked how much time they spend driving along the A96 and were asked to respond to specific scenarios on how they would react to various traffic levels when they need to get to their destination quickly.