Scotland’s LED road signs break down 1,419 times

Scottish Liberal Democrat transport spokesperson Jamie Greene has today pressed the Scottish Government over the impact on traffic as figures uncovered by his party revealed that the average LED sign deployed on Scotland’s road network breaks down more than once per year.

Figures from Transport Scotland uncovered by Scottish Liberal Democrats reveal that there are  313 variable message signs deployed on Scotland’s road network, including 56 on the M90, 48 on the M74, 25 on the M80, 21 on the M8 and 20 on the A9.

From January 2021 to March 2025, these signs required 1,419 fault repairs. This means that the average sign had to be fixed 4.5 times in a little over four years.

Commenting on the figures, Jamie Greene said:

“Traffic drives people round the bend. There’s no worse feeling than having a holiday or a commute disrupted by road works, repairs or long tailbacks.

“Scotland has invested heavily in measures like LED signs to keep road users safe and informed. Unfortunately these signs seem to be prone to breakdowns of their own.

“We asked how much these signs cost to install and repair and Transport Scotland were unable to answer. High tech solutions are all well and good but perhaps Transport Scotland should set out what benefits these signs provide and whether they think they are providing good value for money.”