Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Why major roads projects on A9 and A96 are stuck in the slow lane

A falling rock warning sign on a section of the A9 at Slochd, north of Carrbridge.
Obstruction and delay means improvements on key corridors in the north and north-east face unending delay. Image: Sandy McCook/ DC Thomson

Driving through Nairn has become a frustrating experience for travellers trundling their way along the A96 between Aberdeen and Inverness.

No matter how beautiful the Victorian sandstone villas might be in the eastern gateway to the Highlands, few people want to sit and stare at them for any length of time in the queues that form at the town’s eight sets of traffic lights.

The A96 through Nairn busy with car traffic.
Even the beautiful views in Nairn can lose their charm after too long a wait in traffic. Image: Sandy McCook/ DC Thomson

Some drivers have become so fed-up with peak-time gridlock they now avoid the town completely, heading instead for the unofficial “Nairn bypass” along the road past Cawdor.

Further east, Elgin continues to sprawl – and all it takes is for a car to be parked awkwardly on Moss Street for traffic to start tailing back along the eastern approaches to Keith’s gridiron layout.

Moss Street in Elgin
Moss Street in Elgin uninhibited by awkwardly parked cars. Image: Jason Hedges

Dual carriageways have almost made it as far as Inverurie, yet the promises made in 2011 by the Scottish Government to dual the A96 along its full length by 2030 remain a distant dream, along with a similar pledge covering the A9 between Inverness and Perth by 2025.

Road upgrades improve economy

In October, a survey of 40 companies by Moray Chamber of Commerce found 95% believed dualling the A96 would have a “positive impact” on their business.

Last year’s Holyrood power-sharing agreement between the Scottish National Party and Scottish Green Party triggered an “A96 corridor review”, which took place in May and June this year.

The review is due to be published before Hogmanay, but Transport Minister Jenny Gilruth used a debate in the Scottish Parliament earlier this month to reaffirm the Scottish Government’s commitment to dualling the full length of the road.

Scottish Government transport minister Jenny Gilruth
Transport Minister Jenny Gilruth. Image: DC Thomson

While the A9 and A96 projects were not mentioned in either Acting Finance Secretary John Swinney’s £615 million emergency budget review earlier this month or his £560 million of spending cuts on September 7, businesses expressed nervousness about December’s Scottish budget and whether the squeeze on public finances could lead to the two upgrades being delayed.

Moray ‘cannot be left behind’

Moray Chamber of Commerce chief executive Sarah Medcraf said: “Our members have told us the dualling of the A96 would reduce their transport costs, improve their direct links between business locations and improve business confidence – the combined impact of these outcomes is critical.

“We have heard from businesses who cannot get raw materials delivered – or if they can, they pay a premium – or cannot ship out of the region at a price that competes with their competitors.

“To be competitive, we need to be connected.”

Moray Chamber of Commerce chief executive Sarah Medcraf
Moray Chamber of Commerce chief executive Sarah Medcraf said A96 improvements need to be “viewed seriously for our economic growth”. Image: Jason Hedges

She added: “We understand the reason behind the review and, of course, are nervous around the budget cuts, but Moray cannot be left behind.

“We’ve written to the transport minister, Jenny Gilruth, and Transport Scotland on our survey findings.

“With more than 60% of members believing the dualling will improve staff recruitment and improve sales, we need to ensure the A96 is viewed seriously for our economic growth.”

Mike Duncan, north-east development manager at the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), said: “The overarching project to dual the A96 is vital to our small business community, and our politicians must commit to making it a reality.

“At times, you only have to attempt to drive through Nairn or Elgin to experience why.”

Dual road for safety

Ronnie Gillespie runs a vehicle recovery and repair business in Elgin, so is at the sharp end of the situation.

Ronnie Gillespie, of Ronnie Gillespie Auto Repairs, Elgin, recovering a vehicle from a recent crash on the A96 by Forres
Ronnie Gillespie, of Ronnie Gillespie Auto Repairs, Elgin, recovering a vehicle from a recent crash on the A96 by Forres. Image: FSB Scotland/ Ronnie Gillespie

“For me, the dualling is all about safety,” Mr Gillespie said, adding: “Many of the crashes I attend appear to be caused by driver frustration, often from being stuck behind slow-moving vehicles without the opportunity to overtake.

“There are also incidents of bumps and shunts at the numerous roundabouts drivers encounter when driving through our towns.

“I believe the A96 would be a far safer road if it was completely dualled.”

What did Transport Scotland say?

A spokesman for Transport Scotland said the government remained committed to dualling the A96, and “the report on the public consultation and the initial appraisal will be published by the end of the year”.

He added: “The recent emergency budget review has resulted in re-profiling land purchase for the A96 dualling Inverness to Nairn, including the Nairn bypass.”

“This reprofiling will not adversely affect overall plans for delivering the project, he said, adding: “These current savings will be picked up in future phases, with the project only commencing if approved under the relevant statutory procedures, and thereafter a timetable for progress can be set.

“The reprofiling of expenditure on major projects is not uncommon and relates to the stage the project is at in its delivery.

“We continue to progress the statutory process stages for the Inverness to Nairn – including the Nairn bypass – section and, as confirmed by the minister for transport in parliament on November 2, we expect to be able to make the orders in the coming weeks.”

An overturned car on a main road out of Elgin which was blocked in this accident in 2021.
A main road south out of Elgin was blocked in this accident in 2021.

“Reprofiling” means buying land in future phases, rather than now.

The spokesman added: “The Scottish Government has been clear it has not been possible to fund all the commitments from the 2021 capital spending review, given current levels of inflation and the cost crisis.

“The Scottish Government remains committed to investing in Scotland’s future, including improvements to the A9 and A96.

“We regularly assess future funding and financing opportunities to deliver strategic assets in the right places – that is good governance.”

Questions over completing A9 dualling by 2025

Heading south from Inverness, the A9 has been left as a patchwork of single and dual-carriageways following 1970s’ and 80s’ upgrades.

The £3 billion dualling project announced in 2011 is due to be completed in 2025 but, even with a generous end date of that year’s Hogmanay, only 37 months remain to complete the upgrades.

So far, just two of the 11 sections – between Kincraig and Dalraddy, and Luncarty and Pass of Birnam – have been completed, covering fewer than 11 miles of the 80 needing dualled.

The FSB’s Mr Duncan highlighted businesses’ issues in bringing raw materials up the A9, echoing Ms Medcraf’s comments about the A96.

Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) north-east development manager Mike Duncan
FSB north-east development manager Mike Duncan said the uncertainty around the A9 was a “huge concern”. Image: Ian Forsyth

He added: “The continued uncertainty surrounding the upgrade of the A9 is of huge concern to the local small business communities along the length of this vital highway.

“Delays and pushbacks undermine business confidence and rightly raise questions about the government’s commitment to delivering the project of dualling from Perth to Inverness by 2025.

“Positive progress should be recognised but commitments made must now be fulfilled.”

Transport Scotland’s spokesman said: “We are working hard to bring the benefits of the A9 dualling programme to Scotland, one of the biggest transport infrastructure projects in Scotland’s history.

“We have already invested approximately £431m to date delivering the programme, with work ongoing to determine the most suitable procurement options for the remaining sections.

“This is a complex exercise, which looks at a number of factors, including how the programme can be delivered most efficiently by the industry within the original cost estimate, whilst minimising disruption to road users and helping to support economic recovery post-Covid.

“We will, of course, update parliament when this work is completed.”

READ: Six of the worst stretches of road in the Highlands – and what’s being done about them

Conversation