HEAVY RAIN IN THE NORTH OF SCOTLAND

Up 100mm of rain is expected in the Moray, Speyside and Easter Ross areas over the next 24 hours, which could cause localised flooding and difficult driving conditions during the peak hours of Monday morning. Out with these areas, a Yellow “be aware” warning for rain is in place for the northern and eastern parts of the country.

A Yellow warning has also been issued for strong winds moving from the North of England overnight up the East coast of Scotland, with gusts of up to 40mph in some areas.

Transport Scotland and our partners, including the local authorities, SEPA and Police Scotland are closely monitoring the situation to make sure that we are well prepared for the conditions.

Traffic Scotland Operator Manager Stein Connelly said:

“The Met Office is telling us that parts of the North East and Highlands & Islands are likely to face difficult road conditions due to heavy rain tonight and into Monday morning.

“We would advise people in these areas to prepare for some travel disruption and to allow extra time for their journeys. They should also check the relevant websites for up to date travel information.

"Transport Scotland is in regular contact with The Met Office, Police Scotland and the operating companies and will continue to monitor the conditions throughout tonight and tomorrow.”

Marc Becker, Hydrology Duty Manager, for the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) said:

"Wet and windy weather is expected over many parts of Scotland today and into tomorrow which has the potential to result in some localised flooding especially across the east and north of the country.

"We would advise the public to take care during commuting time tomorrow morning in North-east Scotland in particular.

"SEPA will continue to monitor the situation and would encourage the public to check the SEPA website for flood alerts (http://floodline.sepa.org.uk/floodupdates/) or call SEPA's Floodline on 0345 988 1188 for the most up to date information on their area."

The Traffic Scotland twitter feed @trafficscotland and website www.trafficscotland.org will have the latest information on travel conditions across the country.