Community reaches agreement on A9
The preferred route for the A9 dualling between Birnam and its crossing over the River Tay has been agreed on by the community.
Members of the A9 Co-Creative, a ground-breaking group made up of local residents to help advise on decisions made on the A9 dualling, have agreed on a location and design for the Pass of Birnam to Tay Crossing section.
Over 700 people voted in the group’s poll earlier this summer, and 45 per cent of people said ‘route A’ was their first choice.
Route A will see an upgrade on the current A9 in a 1.5 kilometre long cut-and-cover tunnel as it passes Birnam and Little Dunkeld.
This also includes a roundabout at Dunkeld with a left-in, left-out junction at The Hermitage and a full movement grade separated junction at Dalguise.
And, a total of 68 per cent of voters also agreed with creating a separate junction for access to Murthly Castle, which is south of the present Birnam junction.
The group had been set up earlier this year to help give residents a say on the major project, which will eventually see the whole of the A9 between Perth and Inverness dualled.
A number of issues such as the close proximity of both Dunkeld and Birnam Railway Station and housing in the town to the A9 were just some of the concerns the group were keen to address.
A spokesperson for the A9 Co-Creative group said: “After many months of engagement to develop design ideas for dualling the A9 from the Pass of Birnam to the Tay Crossing, the preferred route option from the co-creative process has been selected which then will be submitted to the Scottish Government for consideration by ministers.
“We would like to thank everyone involved in the A9 CoCreative process for their hard work and the community for their ongoing enthusiasm and active participation.
“That we have reached this milestone is a testament to everyone’s commitment to reaching a conclusion to the process.”
The group received over 160 design ideas from the community, with 80 making the shortlist. Four routes were then selected for members of the public to choose from.
The spokesperson continued: “Over the coming months Transport Scotland will be doing further design and assessment work on the route selected by the community to bring that up to the level necessary to inform ministers when deciding on the preferred option for the project.
“There will be further engagement with the community as this is done and further opportunities for you to provide input before the route options The group has declared their preferred route for dualling the A9
stage of the project is completed.
“It is expected that the ministers’ decision on the preferred option for the Pass of Birnam to Tay Crossing will be
made by the end of 2018.”
The preferred route agreed on by the A9 Co-Creative will now be sent to government ministers for consideration.