Emergency services called to FIFTH road crash near Blair Drummond Safari Park in a month

Two people were treated and released at scene following a road crash on the A84 near Blair Drummond Safari Park - the fifth crash in the area in less than a month.

Two people received treatment at the scene following a road accident on the A84 near Blair Drummond Safari Park at the weekend – the fifth crash near the attraction in less than a month.

The most recent collision, involving two vehicles, occurred just before 11am on Saturday, August 23, on a stretch of the A84 between Ochiltyre and Blairdrummond – understood to have been around 500 yards from the main entrance to the popular tourist attraction in Stirling.

In response to the incident, the safari park issued a warning to visitors, saying: "If you're heading to the park today, please come via Gargunnock or Doune to avoid delays. Stay safe, everyone!"

A single ambulance was dispatched to the scene by the Scottish Ambulance Service. A spokesperson added: "We received a call at 10.53am on Saturday, August 23, to attend a two-vehicle road traffic collision on the A84 between Ochiltyre and Blairdrummond, Stirling."

Police Scotland have been contacted.

There have been community calls for urgent safety improvements on this stretch of the A84 in recent weeks following a series of collisions.

Saturday's crash is the fifth incident on the short stretch of the A84 since Tuesday, July 29.

This follows a two-vehicle crash last week which resulted in three people being rushed to hospital and seven others receiving treatment at the scene.

Emergency services were called to the scene on Cuthill Brae, at around 4.15pm on Saturday, August 16.

The smash occurred near the junction with the A873 – close to Blair Drummond Smiddy Farm Shop – and led to the route being shut to traffic until around 7.30pm.

Earlier this month, we revealed how chiefs from Blair Drummond Safari Park, local campaigners and politicians were renewing their demands for enhanced safety measures on the route following the string of crashes.

Two collisions took place at the entrance to the safari park – at the junction of the A84 with Sommer's Lane – with a third incident at the Blair Drummond Smiddy Farm Shop junction, where the A84 meets the A873.

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Last week, we also revealed how a safety review on the section of the A84 at Kincardine-in-Menteith Primary School and Blair Drummond Community Hall is ongoing to improve road safety for crossing schoolchildren.

Community leaders have recently voiced concerns over road safety on the stretch of the A84, from the Sommer's Lane junction, at the Blair Drummond Safari Park entrance, to the A873 junction, at Blair Drummond Smiddy Farm Shop.

Fresh calls for additional traffic calming measures were made by campaigners, with Blair Drummond Safari Park bosses supporting the appeal, describing the road as "no longer fit for purpose".

Blair Drummond Safari Park said that it has "repeatedly raised concerns" with Transport Scotland regarding the A84's safety, but their pleas for intervention have "consistently been denied". Park manager Gavin Hughes said earlier this month: "Over the years, we have asked for a range of safety measures to be considered – including a reduced speed limit, a slip road, a roundabout, and a pedestrian crossing to help people safely cross from the other side.

"Unfortunately, none of these proposals have been taken forward."

Back in March 2019, Transport Scotland published a safety review of the stretch which suggested a "preferred option" to cut traffic speeds would have been constructing a roundabout there, but stated at the time that it was "not a priority".

A new roundabout connecting the A84 and A873 was estimated to cost around £3.5 million at the time.

Earlier this month, a Transport Scotland spokesman said that the junction outside the safari park's main entrance "has not been identified for safety focused investment based on the collision history over the last three years".

They continued: "But we will discuss the details of the most recent collisions with Police Scotland to understand the circumstances behind them."

Thornhill and Blairdrummond Community Council voiced their long-standing worries about the matter, with a spokesman saying it "will take a death on the road before anything changes at this rate".

Stirling's MSP Evelyn Tweed has penned a letter to Transport Scotland and the Transport Secretary, Fiona Hyslop, demanding urgent action to boost road safety. Mid-Scotland & Fife Conservative MSP, Alexander Stewart, has "strenuously urged" Transport Scotland to take "urgent action to address this problem", promising to pen a letter to them to put the report's recommendations into action.

Stirling and Strathallan MP Chris Kane mirrored these calls for immediate action, querying Transport Scotland about what measures are being implemented to improve safety at these junctions and asked for updated accident data to better understand the scale of the issue.