Sixth Form College). Safety and accidents The A74 drew regular criticism over its perceived lack of safety. Some motorists had criticised the A74 as being a "killer road" due to its perceived high number of accidents. MPs, however, were keen to stress that the rate of accidents was no different from any other road of comparable traffic size. In 1976, Frank McElhone, then the Under-Secretary of State for Scotland, stated that "the A74 has gained a bad reputation. Whether this is justified in comparison with other roads is to some extent a matter of opinion." By the 1970s, following completion of the M6 to north of Carlisle, the remaining all-purpose section of the A74 was becoming increasingly outdated and unsafe, and so a special speed limit of ( for HGVs) was imposed. Hector Monro MP was particularly concerned about the speed of heavy goods vehicles along the road, and wanted to erect signs reminding lorry drivers of what the correct limit for that class of vehicle was. He claimed that they did not realise they were driving on an all-purpose route and ignored the different speed limits. On 16 June 1975, an articulated lorry travelling southbound in heavy rain crossed the central reserve of the A74 near Beattock, hitting a coach that was travelling northbound. Ten passengers travelling in the coach were killed, including the driver, and twenty were seriously injured. Since the accident involved traversing a grass-covered central reserve, concerns were raised about retrofitting crash barriers along the entirety of the road. On 22 December 2004, a major road accident occurred on the Cumberland Gap section of the A74 near Metal Bridge, after high winds tipped a lorry travelling southbound onto the opposite carriageway, causing it to collide with two other goods vehicles. Because one of the lorries carried chemicals, the entire road had to be shut for 24 hours, causing widespread congestion across the area. David Maclean, MP for Penrith and The Border, said "I'm fed up nagging about the Cumberland gap", adding "I know the government considers railways to be a higher priority, but Cumbria cannot survive without decent roads." In August 2008, when the A74 was still an all-purpose road across the Cumberland Gap, the Highways Agency took out a special order to ban cyclists and pedestrians from the route, advising them to use the A7 to Longtown instead. Despite warning signs for cyclists being erected,