Local constituency MSP Finlay Carson believes the First Minister learned a “great deal” from his visit to Crocketford.
The Galloway and West Dumfries MSP welcomed John Swinney to the village on Monday to meet transport groups, local road campaigners and activists as well as the ferry operators.
He defended the decision not to invite fellow MSPs, insisting it was important that key stakeholders got the opportunity to express their views without the danger of it turning it into political point-scoring exercise.
Speaking afterwards, Mr Carson said: “This was a chance to allow stakeholders such as the Road Haulage Association, Stena Line and P&O as well as Belfast Harbour the chance to express their views regarding the safety and reliability record of the A75.
“I invited Tam Gaffney of the A75 Campaign and Donald McHarrie of the A77 Campaign as well as Ann Botel of Crocketford Community Initiative to speak to the First Minister and make their points heard.
“As I have maintained for a long time it is quite clear the A75 needs investment and we need it sooner rather than later.”
The Scottish Conservative and Unionist MSP welcomed news that engineers have now been appointed to look at the route and the technical details for the bypasses at Springholm and Crocketford.
He also repeated calls that previous studies of potential bypass routes would also be taken into consideration.
However the local MSP cautioned that any potential start date on a bypass or bypasses was likely to be at least several years down the line.
He said: “Encouragingly we are moving in the right direction but I believe it will probably be a couple of years before the assessment was complete and some time after that before work would begin.
“But I remain optimistic progress will be made on the bypasses. It is a signal that it is going to happen and that is far more than we have had in the past.”
One issue that also gave him hope was the promise by the First Minister to actively look at the installation of overhead average speed cameras.
Mr Carson said: “This is something I have been calling for over many years now and I take some heart that the First Minister has agreed to look at as a matter of urgency towards improving the road’s poor safety record.
“Overall I believe it was a productive and rewarding meeting while allowing the First Minister to come up to speed with the urgent need for improvements.
“He heard first hand of the many problems including the knock on effect of road closures and the use of totally unacceptable B roads as alternatives.”
Mr Swinney assured stakeholders he would explore “every possible opportunity” to improve safety.
Describing the meeting as “constructive” he said: “The Scottish Government understands the strategic importance of both the A75 and A77 to Scotland’s economy.
The First Minister stressed: “We value the critical link they provide to the wider markets in the rest of the UK and Europe by connecting the ports at Cairnryan to the wider trunk road network.
“Discussing the A75 with local partners today has been very productive and Transport Scotland will continue to liaise with them as design and assessment work is taken forward.”
He admitted: “This is a complex piece of work with will require consideration of road safety, engineering, environmental, traffic and economic factors in order to identify a preferred option for the improvements.
“There is the possibility of smaller, more incremental improvements that might be possible to be taken forward to improve safety, and I certainly am keen to ensure we explore every possible opportunity for doing that.
“And then there are other suggestions on safety, for example, average speed cameras.”
However, the First Minister stressed that at a time of “enormous demands on public finances” they would have to undertake projects “as quickly and as expeditiously” as they could.
But Mr Swinney said he clearly understood the depth of concern there is within the local community about the A75 and the issues of road safety.
He added: “It’s vital that people are able to live in safety and to access transport routes in the locality….I’ve heard that message loud and clear.”
