My car died on me last week. Having just crawled over the 100,000-mile mark, it now seems to be doing its level best to make the next thousand as painful as possible.

I think its big end has gone but I have no idea what a car’s big end is, so I may be mistaken.

My car spluttered and died on the very day that it was revealed by Audit Scotland that the cost of the M74 extension through Glasgow had risen to almost £700m.

Now £700m is a lot of money — £500m more than the original estimates in 2001. One of the factors in this most recent rise of £35m was the irritatingly pointless year-long delay brought about by the Greens who challenged the decision to approve the road and then pulled out on the day it was due to go to court. So did Green MSP Patrick Harvie look shamefaced when he popped up on Newsnight Scotland last week? Of course not.

Harvie’s blinkered approach to transport means he couldn’t even bring himself to back the eminently sensible idea of adding dual carriageway to the A9 during the programme. He will not agree but the completion of the M74 is long overdue — by about 30 years to my mind.

It is just one of many Scottish road projects that should have been tackled years ago. Plugging the final gap on the M8, upgrading the A80 to motorway and the Aberdeen bypass are just a few of those outstanding but, in the current climate, I am beginning to grow more concerned that some, and possibly many, of these vital projects may end up being kicked into the long grass.

Transport Scotland’s two-year review of Scotland’s roads and rail strategy for the 10 years between 2012 and 2022 is due to report to ministers soon. It has to balance a need to ensure we have the right system to deliver economic growth while taking account of the government’s desire to reduce emissions.

The high cost of fuel, increasing pressure on the government’s budget and the unrelenting noise from the green lobby can make roads politically unattractive. Headline figures about the extra millions in costs can make ministers nervous. The trouble is, as many business groups have long argued, Scotland lags behind other countries when it comes to our transport infrastructure.

In England, the Highways Agency is considering plans to open up hard shoulders to reduce congestion. I have my doubts about that but we do need an innovative approach to improving journey times on our roads as well as a commitment from the Scottish government to properly invest.

The M74 project had the advantage of being an integral part of Glasgow’s bid for the 2014 Commonwealth Games which afforded it some protection from political interference. The others do not.

The increase in cost of the M74 is nothing to worry about. The true cost to Scotland would be failing to develop necessary infrastructure. I only hope my sick car lasts long enough to enable me to drive along it in three years’ time — and I will happily give Mr Harvie a lift if he wants.

Debt picks up

It will not come as a great surprise that Scottish debt solutions company Invocas enjoyed a healthy boost to its share price last week despite a rise in profits of just more than £3.4m for the past 12 months.

As the economic outlook worsens, the future inevitably looks brighter for the Edinburgh-based company.

Invocas, which is listed on AIM, paid a 2.5p maiden dividend and new chief executive Stephen Lightly, predicted a rise in demand for its services as credit issues and inflation push up consumer debt.

Invocas shares had fallen from 130p around a year ago to a low of 39p at the beginning of last week but by the end of the week, they had regained some ground to end on 58p.

Switched on

The rebranding of SMG to STV is a very smart move by Rob Woodward. On one level, the media group’s chief executive is making a final cut with the past regime but on another level it allows him to fully market the main brand as an integral part of the company.

At times it used to feel like the old SMG was rather embarrassed about being Scottish, especially when they could not make up their minds what to actually call the television channel.

The opportunity with the growth of digital, increased investment in BBC Scotland and the recovery of STV means there is real potential for Scotland to enjoy a broadcasting renaissance.

But at the same time, as Woodward pointed out to me, Manchester is going to become another magnet like London for Scottish media talent when the BBC moves a lot of its operations out of London to the north.

The Scottish Broadcasting Commission is due to report by September and surely they must come out firmly in favour of a new digital channel? There are plenty of ways this could be done. Understandably, Woodward wants the opportunity but there are other alternatives.

Perhaps it is sign of STV’s improving health that it is now looking forward to those opportunities rather than backwards at its past mistakes.

john.penman@sunday-times.co.uk

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