Plans to fully dual A96 between Aberdeen and Inverness could be scrapped

Plans to fully dual the A96 between Aberdeen and Inverness may be abandoned following new draft plans for the major road.

The Scottish Government committed to dualling the 86-mile road in 2011. However, a new review by Transport Scotland has now made the case against fully dualling the A96, saying it would negatively impact the Scottish Government's net zero emissions target, including the greenhouse gas emissions, and the amount of land it would require.

It has concluded that a "refined package" of targeted improvements, including proposed bypasses for Elgin and Keith in Moray, would be better than dualling the entire road.

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Other proposals include improved infrastructure for electric vehicles and general road safety improvements. There is also an emphasis on improving rail services, walking and cycling routes.

The Scottish Government's position on the report will be set out by transport secretary Fiona Hyslop in a statement to parliament this afternoon (November 28).

The Transport Scotland report concluded: "Overall, the Refined Package performs better than full dualling in terms of the appraisal criteria, particularly with respect to the impact on the environment, sustainability, equality and inclusivity."

Speaking following the Transport Scotland publication, Scottish Conservative North East MSP Liam Kerr said: “It is disgraceful the review has not included the full dualling as one of the eight recommended options for upgrading the A96.

“This report shows the deck has been stacked firmly against most of the project ever being started by the SNP government.

“The abandonment of this is a betrayal to communities across the North East who were promised in 2011 that the road would be dualled from Aberdeen to Huntly and in Moray.

“Not only that, a new bypass for Inverurie also isn’t mentioned, despite huge safety issues and congestion around the town.

“The review sends the wrong message to families who have tragically lost loved ones to the dangers of this road, which, in its present state, is not fit for purpose.”

Speaking ahead of the statement in Holyrood, Scottish Green transport spokesman Mark Ruskell called for the majority of the project to be scrapped.

“There is no economic or environmental case for dualling every square inch of the A96, and the SNP must accept this and halt the project,” he said.

“If the dualling project goes ahead, it will be incompatible with our goals to reduce the number of cars on our roads and cut climate emissions.

“We are already far behind where we need to be on our climate targets, and we cannot afford to pour billions of pounds into a project that will only push that target back even further if more cars are flying up and down the country.

“Some safety improvements and bypasses on the A96 are important, but the exorbitant sums set aside for fully dualling could be put to better use by investing in these safety improvements and better public transport, which could cut our emissions rapidly and give people choices other than travelling by car across Scotland.

“The climate assessment is long overdue, but we know that no review worth the paper it’s printed on would recommend ploughing ahead with such a climate-wrecking project.”