Transport Scotland - launch of A96 Corridor Review Consultation

Please see a letter below from Transport Scotland:

Dear Business,

As you may be aware, in August 2021, the Scottish Government and Scottish Green Party Parliamentary Group agreed a Cooperation Agreement and shared policy programme. The shared policy programme set out various agreed principles regarding investment in the transport network. In relation to the A96, the Agreement commits to:

• Taking forward a transport enhancements programme on the A96 corridor that improves connectivity between surrounding towns, tackles congestion and addresses safety and environmental issues. This will include:

• • dualling from Inverness to Nairn
  • bypassing of Nairn, Keith, Elgin and Inverurie accompanied by measures to remove through traffic from the by-passed town centres
  • targeted road safety improvements where needed, for example between Fochabers and Huntly and Inverurie to Aberdeen
  • the development of an A96 “Electric Highway”

Other commitments given in relation to the North East of Scotland included developing a programme of enhanced public transport improvements, which will include:

• work to improve the resilience, reliability and efficiency of the Aberdeen to Inverness rail corridor, alongside the commitment to decarbonise the rail network, to make it more competitive to road and encourage modal shift for both passengers and freight
• working with Nestrans, Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire Councils on the feasibility of a mass rapid transit system for the region, and also a rail link between Dyce and Ellon and further north to Peterhead and Fraserburgh
• reviewing the A96 corridor with a view to implementing appropriate bus priority measures

We are getting in touch to let you know that Jacobs AECOM have been appointed as consultants to assist Transport Scotland in carrying out a review of the A96 corridor.

A public consultation to gather key information and views to inform the review has commenced today. Our interactive Story Map which provides further information on the A96 Corridor Review has launched this morning and can be accessed here: https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/b5727b89390f4c5d84eac6b04a97b062.

Our A96 Corridor Review digital consultation survey has also gone live today, and we would like to extend this invitation to you and your organisation to participate in the consultation exercise. You can access our digital consultation survey here: https://forms.office.com/r/kuEfS0Yzat. The survey is open until 10 June 2022.

As part of the review, we will work with the public, businesses and key stakeholders to increase understanding of how the transport system is currently used, and to identify existing problems, opportunities and suggestions to inform specific objectives for the A96 corridor. The identified problems, opportunities and suggestions will inform the development of options for the A96 corridor and then be appraised through a transparent, evidence-based review following Scottish Transport Appraisal Guidance.

We appreciate a wide range of engagement and consultation has been carried out on the A96 in recent years. This consultation exercise will build on the previous engagement undertaken and seek to identify how travel patterns have changed due to Covid-19 or the climate emergency and ascertain views on the current problems and opportunities connected to the route in light of these significant events.

All the feedback from the consultation and engagement period will be analysed and developed into a consultation report. This will inform the A96 Corridor Review and will feed into the appraisal stages.

Jacobs AECOM would welcome the opportunity to meet with Hermes to understand the views of your stakeholders on what problems and opportunities are present on the A96 corridor today and to hear any suggestions you may have to improve the corridor.

We will be holding a virtual forum on Wednesday, 25 May 2022 at 3:00pm for key businesses. We hope you can join us. The format will be a short presentation followed by an open discussion about the current problems, opportunities and suggestions for improvements along the route. During the session, we will also be using a MURAL interactive board so you can share your views and feedback. A link to the MURAL board will be circulated at the start of the meeting.

In the meantime, if you have any questions about the A96 Corridor Review or would like to discuss this further, please contact a96corridorreview@jacobs.com.

Yours sincerely,

David Burt
Project Manager
Major Projects

transport.gov.scot