A CAMPAIGNING councillor has called for one of Renfrewshire’s busiest roads to be upgraded after it was revealed that, on average, a crash takes place there once a fortnight.

There were 126 accidents on the A737, which links Johnstone and nearby villages with Ayrshire, between 2016 and 2020.

Two of these involved a fatality, while 27 were classified as either ‘serious’ or ‘very serious.’

The notorious road is dualled up to Kilbarchan but then turns into a single carriageway for the stretch down to Lochwinnoch.

Councillor Andy Doig, who represents Johnstone North, Kilbarchan, Howwood and Lochwinnoch as an independent, said upgrading the A737 could save lives.

He told The Gazette: “The last meeting of Renfrewshire Council’s leadership board had an item about the UK Government’s Levelling Up Fund and it is clear there is a window of opportunity for the council to secure funding, along with partners in Transport Scotland, to upgrade the A737 in 2022.

“The fact that these statistics show the safety deficiencies on the A737 between Lochwinnoch and Kilbarchan are ‘serious’ means we need action now.”

Data on the number of accidents taking place on the A737 was released by the Scottish Conservatives, who have urged the Scottish Government to outline plans to improve safety.

Shadow Transport Minister Graham Simpson said: “Not only would this investment in our road network help boost Scotland’s recovery, it would also reduce the risk of drivers being involved in accidents.”

A spokesman for Transport Scotland, which is the national agency tasked with delivering the Scottish Government’s transport vision, said efforts are being made to improve road safety across the country.

This includes £21million to deliver a road safety framework which aims to reduce by half the number of people being killed or seriously injured on Scotland’s roads by 2030, with a long-term goal of no-one being killed or seriously injured by 2050.

The spokesman added: “The framework has identified funding and resourcing – to improve funding streams for national and local road safety delivery – as one of 12 key enablers to achieve those targets.”