Council bosses have blamed “contractor productivity” as they push back the reopening of Aberdeen’s revamped Union Street by months.
The central section of the Granite Mile has been sealed off since last summer, as work takes place to reimagine the space between Market Street and Bridge Street.
It had been hoped it would be complete by the end of this year, with new cycle lanes, wider pavements and a plaza-style entrance in front of the new Flint market all created.
However, project chiefs have now confirmed that the £20 million programme has been delayed until the spring of 2026.
And one local authority executive appeared to take a surprise jab at construction workers as he listed the reasons for the setback.
What’s the latest on the Union Street revamp?
Papers going before a finance meeting next week spell out the troubles that have hindered the Union Street project.
The document, penned by retiring chief captial officer John Wilson, emphasises the scheme’s aims to “regenerate shopping experiences, increase footfall and attract visitors”.
He lists some of the setbacks as the removal of tram sleepers which were embedded in the road, and an “undocumented redundant water main”.
But the official also blames the delays on “less than required contractor productivity”.
Morrison Construction is the main contractor appointed by Aberdeen City Council to lead the regeneration of the central Union Street strip.
And Mr Wilson adds: “The magnitude of delay and possible mitigations are still being discussed.
“However, it is clear that the works will now not be completed in 2025 but are more likely to be spring 2026.”
Is Union Street delay due to slacking Aberdeen workers?
The apparent jibe has left project insiders baffled, who say that local authority bosses have not raised any concerns over staff on-site not working hard enough.
Just last week, contractors began a new phase of the scheme – working to transform the pavements on one side of the street.
Project bosses told The Press and Journal this had been done to scope out some future phases for potential problems.
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‘His opinion is a fair one’
And the SNP finance convener of the council, Alex McLellan tells The P&J the chief capital officer’s opinion is “fair”.
“I think there are a number of factors slowing this down,” he says.
“When they got underground there’s perhaps not what they were expecting. That requires consulting other bodies like Scottish Water to come and see what’s what.
“But the chief capital officer is the one managing these contractors, and if that’s his opinion, then certainly that is a fair one.”
Mr McLellan continued: “I am not out there managing these contracts directly but what I would say is there is an expectation from the council that the contractors are delivering projects as quickly as possible and to the correct standard.
“And certainly we want it delivered within those parameters so hopefully we can see things move forward and lessons can be learned.”
‘Business will suffer as timelines slip’
North East MSP Douglas Lumsden spearheaded the plans for a new Aberdeen market building when he was co-leader of the council.
He blasted the “extremely disappointing” news of the setback.
Mr Lumsden added: “The council has taken their eye off the ball and the blame lies solely at their door – not the workers.
“Businesses that have remained loyal to Union Street throughout these works now face paying the price for the council’s negligence in allowing timescales to slip.”
‘Ambitious timeline recalibrated’ for Union Street work
Mr McLellan added: “This is a significant piece of work in the city centre, the sort we haven’t seen for decades.
“So we are expecting to perhaps to deal with scenarios like this and we are having to do that and recalibrate our timeline.
“The initial timeline was ambitious but certainly we will try to move forward as quickly as possible.”
Meanwhile, there is another update indicating that work to transform the Castlegate has been confirmed to begin after the Tall Ships race.
Read more:
Video reveals future of Aberdeen’s Union Street as project bosses plot out next steps of revamp
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