The area where Stirlingshire motorcyclist David Buckley died in a Christmas Day crash has seen an increase in collisions, new figures have revealed.
Stirling Council’s Forth and Endrick ward – which encapsulates Kippen, Buchlyvie, Balfron and Drymen, as well as Ben Lomond – experienced a significant year-on-year increase in crashes in 2024.
This includes the A811 road, which stretches from Stirling to Balloch, where Mr Buckley died.
However, the latest total does not take Mr Buckley’s death into account, as it occurred outwith the reporting period.
The newly-released figures say seven crashes have already occurred in the area during 2024-2025, compared to four in 2023-2024, and three in 2022-2023.
The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) called the A811 “an area for continued focus”, and said it is working with partners to improve safety on the route.
Mr Buckley, aged 60, died after a collision on the A811 between the King’s Knot roundabout and Kippen Station roundabout near Leckie on December 25, 2024.
Mr Buckley, who had been riding his motorcycle, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Sharp increase in fatal crashes
The SFRS supplied collision statistics to Stirling Council’s Public Safety Committee as part of the fire service’s regular six-month performance report.
SFRS attended a total of 27 road traffic collisions (RTCs) in the Stirling area within the first two quarters of 2024-2025, which was equal to the year previous, and below the 2022-2023 figure.
However, two of the 2024-2025 crashes were fatal incidents.
In contrast, there were no fatal crashes recorded in Stirlingshire during 2023-2024 or 2022-2023.
At a council committee meeting on January 9, Lee Turnock, SFRS group commander for Stirling, Clackmannanshire and Fife, acknowledged these figures did not take into account Mr Buckley’s tragic recent death.
While this brings the total number of fatalities to three for 2024-2025, only Mr Buckley’s death occurred on the A811.
The other two incidents took place in Callander and on the M9, respectively.
A811 being closely monitored
During the council meeting, Gerry McGarvey, Labour councillor for Forth and Endrick, circled back to the A811, saying: “I’m just wondering how concerned we should be about the issues there.”
Mr Turnock said there “wasn’t a particular hotspot along that stretch of road” when RTC data was analysed closely, but that the area is being monitored.
“It’s an area that has peaked my awareness,” the fire chief added.
Mr McGarvey stressed that observation and identification of any potential crash hotspots is vital.
Stirling North Conservative councillor Rachel Nunn, of the Stirling North ward, suggested setting up a round-table meeting to discuss the A811 and what can be done to improve safety, which was supported.
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