Volume 1, Chapter 2 - Need for the Scheme

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Introduction

This chapter sets out the national and local context for the A9 Dualling programme (Transport Scotland, 2025). It also establishes the need for the A9 Dualling programme, which includes the proposed scheme. Delivery of the proposed scheme is therefore required to deliver the need for the A9 Dualling as a whole.

The A9 Trunk Road

The A9 is a strategic route linking central Scotland to the north of Scotland. Currently, the A9 from Perth to Inverness comprises sections of both single carriageway and dual carriageway. In addition, there are a few short sections of Wide Single 2+1 (WS2+1) where the road consists of two lanes of travel in one direction and a single lane in the opposite direction, therefore providing overtaking opportunities in the two-lane direction, however, overtaking in the single lane direction is prohibited.

The A9 is a vital link used by both local and long-distance traffic. It is a major bus route and is used by freight traffic supporting key industries, such as food and drink, oil, energy, waste and construction. The route is used by tourists as a means of reaching locations in Perthshire and the Highlands. It is considered that the upgrade of the A9 to dual carriageway would help assist economic growth in the north of Scotland. Dualling of the A9 would improve journey times, potentially saving costs for businesses, reducing driver stress and increasing safety, potentially making the surrounding areas more attractive as a short-term tourism destination, in line with the proposed scheme objectives provided in Section 2.5 (A9 Dualling Programme Review).

The A9 Dualling: Case for Investment report (Transport Scotland, 2016a) outlines strong road user, community, business and planning authority support for the A9 Dualling programme. In particular, the commercial businesses along the A9 corridor are strongly in favour of the A9 Dualling programme and the economic benefits it will bring. The report identifies there are five key sectors most likely to benefit from the proposed scheme: food and drink, tourism, energy, life sciences and forestry. 

Driver stress and frustration were also reviewed as part of the report, which indicated that high levels of driver frustration were linked to slow moving vehicles, the build-up of platoons and the restriction of travel speed to well below desired levels. The report subsequently outlines the benefits of relieving driver frustration by implementing the A9 Dualling programme.

National Context for Dualling

The proposed scheme has been identified within several national strategies and policy frameworks as an important national infrastructure scheme, as discussed below.

A9 Route Action Plan and Route Strategy (1995-97, 1996)

Studies into the potential for improving the A9 Trunk Road date back to 1995-97, with a Route Action Plan (RAP) and a Route Strategy (Scott Wilson Kirkpatrick, 1997), which considered the opportunities to improve safety and relieve driver stress. The upgrade for the section from Pass of Birnam to Tay Crossing formed part of the preferred route strategy at that time.

A9 Route Improvement Strategy Study (2004)

The A9 Route Action Plan 1995-97 was followed by a Route Improvement Strategy Study (RISS) (Scott Wilson, 2004) (Scotland), which aimed to identify a route improvement scheme for a section of the A9 from Perth to Blair Atholl.

This study developed a medium to long term strategy for introducing both dual carriageway and wide single carriageway improvements on the A9 between Perth and Blair Atholl, and exclusively wide single carriageway from Pitlochry to Bruar.

The findings of the RISS (Scott Wilson, 2004) were subject to appraisal as part of the first Strategic Transport Projects Review (STPR), which was first reported by the Scottish Government in 2008 and updated in 2009 (Transport Scotland 2009).

Scotland’s Transport Future (Scottish Executive 2004)

Also in 2004, Scotland’s Transport Future (Scottish Executive, 2004) set out a vision and objectives for transport in Scotland and provided the policy framework for transport in Scotland with an overall aim to “…promote economic growth, social inclusion, health and protection for our environment through a safe, integrated effective and efficient transport system” (page 17).

National Transport Strategy 2006

Scotland’s first National Transport Strategy (NTS; Scottish Executive, 2006) outlined the long-term strategy to meet the aims identified in Scotland’s Transport Future. This strategy was refreshed in 2016 to take account of constitutional, political, economic, social and sectoral changes since 2006 (Transport Scotland, 2016b). The refresh recommended a full review of the NTS and highlighted that the three key strategic outcomes of the 2006 NTS remained relevant. These were:

  • improved journey times and connections, to tackle congestion and lack of integration and connections in transport;
  • reduced emissions, to tackle climate change, air quality, health improvement; and
  • improved quality, accessibility and affordability, to give choice of public transport, better quality services and value for money, or alternative to car.

Strategic Transport Projects Review (2008/2009)

The STPR (Transport Scotland, 2009) was undertaken by Transport Scotland to define the most appropriate strategic investments in Scotland’s national transport network at the time. The review set out 29 investment priorities for Scotland, including the A9 Dualling programme between Perth and Inverness (Intervention 16). The STPR provides the strategic case for the A9 Dualling programme.

Within the context of the Scottish Government’s commitment to planning for dualling of the A9, the STPR identified a number of targeted improvements as initial priorities. These improvements included full dualling of the A9 between Dunblane and Inverness and new grade separated junctions between Dunblane and Perth to reduce accidents and improve journey time reliability.

The 29 investment priorities, published in the STPR, were chosen as they were most effective in contributing towards sustainable economic growth and the National Planning Framework 2 (NPF) (Scottish Government, 2009). NPF2 was superseded in June 2014 by Scotland's third NPF and then, in February 2023, by Scotland’s fourth NPF, both of which set out a long-term vision for the development of Scotland.

In terms of future network performance, the STPR categorised the strategic transport network in 20 corridors, four urban networks (Glasgow, Edinburgh, Dundee and Aberdeen), and two strategic nodes (Perth and Inverness). Effective transport was identified as being key to support the delivery of Scotland’s Economic Strategy. The review concluded that generally the network was performing to a high standard, however, a number of significant areas would require specific attention, this included the following objectives in relation to ‘Corridor 6 – Inverness to Perth’:

  • ‘To reduce journey time and increase opportunities to travel between Inverness and Perth (and hence onwards to the Central Belt);
  • To improve the operational effectiveness of the A9 as it approaches Perth and Inverness;
  • To address issues of driver frustration relating to inconsistent road standard, with attention to reducing accident severity; and
  • To promote journey time reductions, particularly by public transport, between the Central Belt and Inverness primarily to allow business to achieve an effective working day when travelling between these centres' (p.143).

Although a second STPR (STPR2; Transport Scotland, 2019)) was undertaken in 2019-2022 to help inform transport investment in Scotland for a further 20 years, the A9 Dualling was not put forward as a transport intervention as it was already being progressed.

Infrastructure Investment Plan (2011)

The Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure and Capital Investment launched the Infrastructure Investment Plan (IIP) (Scottish Government, 2011) on 06 December 2011. The IIP provides an overview of the Scottish Government’s plans for infrastructure investment for the future including the upgrading of the A9 to dual carriageway. The commitment made to complete the dualling of the A9 between Perth and Inverness was classed as a ‘particularly significant’ project. The commitment to deliver the dualling of the A9 between Perth and Inverness was reaffirmed in the 2015 (Scottish Government, 2015) and again in 2021 (Scottish Government, 2021) IIP’s.

National Planning Framework 3 (2014)

The Scottish Government’s NPF3 (Scottish Government, 2014) was a long-term strategy for Scotland and identified national developments and other strategically important development opportunities to support and help deliver sustainable economic growth. Although NPF3 (Scottish Government 2014) has been superseded by NPF4 (Scottish Government, 2023), NPF3 remains relevant to the development of the proposed scheme in that it makes specific reference to the A9 Dualling programme. In relation to trunk roads and specifically the A9, NPF3 stated:

‘We will complete dualling of the trunk roads between cities, with dualling of the A9 from Perth to Inverness complete by 2025….

The dualling of the A9 between Perth and Inverness and improvements to the Highland Mainline will provide a step change in accessibility across the rural north, increase business confidence and support investment throughout the region.’

NPF3 also made reference to the STPR in providing the evidence base for much of the transport investment outlined in the IIP 2011. In relation to IIP, NPF3 stated:

‘Our strategy complements the Infrastructure Investment Plan – in turn future reviews of infrastructure investment will take into account the longer-term development strategy provided by NPF3.’

A9 Dualling: Case for Investment (2016)

The A9 Dualling: Case for Investment (Transport Scotland, 2016) was undertaken to build upon the business case in the STPR for dualling the A9. The report provides a summary of the Scottish Government’s strategic and socio-economic case for investment for the A9 Dualling programme.

The Case for Investment (Transport Scotland, 2016) demonstrates the main benefits of the A9 Dualling programme as follows:

  • Step-change in connectivity to and between the cities of Inverness and Perth.
  • Journey times between Inverness and Perth will reduce by approximately twenty minutes.
  • Improved access to markets, reduced need for stockpiling and better productivity.
  • Less disruptive future maintenance.
  • Safe, consistent and reliable driving conditions which will lead to improved route resilience and reduced delays during incidents and adverse weather.
  • Fewer road accidents related deaths and fewer serious injuries.
  • Drivers will be able to travel at their optimum speed.

National Transport Strategy 2 (2020)

In February 2020, a new NTS (NTS2) was published, setting out an updated vision for Scotland’s transport system for the next 20 years (Transport Scotland, 2020) for “a sustainable, inclusive, safe and accessible transport system, helping deliver a healthier, fairer and more prosperous Scotland for communities, businesses and visitors”. The vision is underpinned by four Priorities:

  • Reducing inequalities through the provision of fair, easy and affordable access to transport services.
  • Taking climate action by ensuring Scotland’s transport system helps deliver the Scottish Government’s net zero carbon emission target by 2045, adapts to the effects of climate change and promotes the use of sustainable travel options.
  • Delivering inclusive economic growth by ensuring Scotland’s transport network and services will be effectively integrated with spatial and land use planning and economic development, adapt to the changing requirements of citizens, businesses and visitors, provide reliable journey times, and use new and innovative products, services and technologies
  • Improving health and wellbeing by prioritising the prevention and reduction of incidents, promoting active travel and creating cleaner and greener places and networks within the transport system.

NTS2 does not identify or present specific transport projects, schemes, initiatives or interventions, rather it was published within the context of the Scottish Government’s commitment to addressing the global climate emergency, with a statutory target of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045. NTS2 explains that the contribution which transport can make in achieving this important target is reflected throughout the strategy, and in this sense applies to how the A9 Dualling programme is progressed.

National Planning Framework 4 (2023)

The Scottish Government’s NPF4 (Scottish Government, 2023) provides a long-term plan for Scotland that sets out where development and infrastructure is needed to support sustainable and inclusive growth. To deliver sustainable places, Regional Spatial Strategies and Local Development Plans in the north (includes parts of the Highlands and Perth and Kinross) are guided by NPF4 to protect environmental assets and stimulate investment in natural and engineered solutions to climate change and nature restoration, whilst decarbonising transport and building resilient connections. NPF4 states that:

‘Roads will continue to be arteries upon which local communities and businesses depend. There will be a need to adapt key routes due to the impacts of climate change alongside creating a strong network of charging points, including improvements to the A96 to improve safety and to the A9 to maintain a resilient road link from Thurso and Inverness to the central belt.’

In summary, at a national level, the proposed scheme is supported within several national strategies, in particular it aligns with the vision for Scotland’s transport system for the next 20 years, as set out in NTS2 (Transport Scotland, 2020) and the long-term spatial strategy provided in NPF4 to maintain a resilient road link from Inverness to Perth.

Local Context for Dualling

In addition to the national context explained above, the following local context considerations contribute to the need for the proposed scheme.

Local Policy

The Perth and Kinross Local Development Plan 2 (PKC LDP2; PKC, 2019) reflects national policy in relation to delivering sustainable economic growth and promoting the delivery of local and strategic transport infrastructure to support the sustainable development of the area.

PKC LDP2 promotes the delivery of infrastructure, through regional transport strategies (paragraph 19.3.38) and the creation of well served public and private investment opportunities appropriate to the area’s needs. It is stated in PKC LDP2 that, “The biggest single constraint facing the Perth Area is the capacity of the roads infrastructure in and around Perth” (2019, p.256) while Policy 60A (Existing Infrastructure) of PKC LDP2 states that, “The plan identifies existing transport infrastructure; encouragement will be given to the retention and improvement of these facilities” (p.102). The plan emphasises that the delivery of infrastructure is crucial, stating that “ensuring that both local and strategic transport infrastructure is in place to support the sustainable development of Perth and Kinross is critical to the success of the Plan strategy” (p.97). The delivery of the A9 Dualling Programme will provide a significant contribution to alleviate constraints and improve the overall road infrastructure in the region while helping to promote economic growth.

Therefore, the principle of the proposed scheme supports the objectives set out in local policy.

Safety

The current single carriageway section of the A9 between Pass of Birnam to Tay Crossing often results in vehicles being held up by Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs) and other slower moving traffic. This journey time increase can lead to driver frustration potentially resulting in dangerous overtaking manoeuvres, where occurring accidents are often severe. To reduce the potential for driver frustration and road accidents, operational performance will be improved in line with the objective to improve the operational performance of the A9 by reducing journey times and improving journey time reliability. Upgrading the road from single carriageway to dual carriageway would reduce the occurrence of driver frustration and would provide opportunity for safer overtaking in line with the objective to improve safety for motorised and non-motorised users by reducing accident severity and reducing driver stress.

The inclusion of frequent and appropriately sized lay-bys is considered necessary for driver safety. Lay-bys are important as they provide an opportunity for drivers to stop for a short time and rest or for drivers to leave the trunk road in the event of an emergency or breakdown. Provision of lay-bys is essential, despite the presence of grade separated junctions, as some road users may be reluctant or unable to leave the trunk road in times of emergency or to rest, which would impact road safety. The proposed scheme will improve existing lay-bys at the Pass of Birnam, providing greater segregation from traffic and improving safety of access and egress.

Grade separated junctions are proposed at Birnam and Dalguise as well as an at-grade roundabout at Dunkeld which will replace existing at-grade junctions. These junction improvements and the roundabout mitigate the need for potentially dangerous right turns across the path of traffic travelling in the opposite direction, resulting in improved safety for all users.

Existing Traffic Conditions

The current A9 carriageway from Pass of Birnam to Tay Crossing has an Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT) flow of approximately 15,285 (based on 2023 figures). Approximately 13.3% of the traffic is HGVs.

Local and National Accident Statistics

The majority of accidents on the A9 occur along sections of single carriageway, and generally near to junctions. Along the extents of the existing A9 from Pass of Birnam to Tay Crossing, there were 33 accidents between 2014 and 2024. Of these:

  • four of the accidents were Fatal;
  • 15 were categorised as Serious
  • 14 were categorised as Slight.

Average speed cameras were installed and became operational in October 2014.

The A9 Dualling Programme Outline Business Case – November 2023 (Transport Scotland, 2023) provides the most recent published accident data for the A9 Dualling.

When the severity of recorded Road Traffic Collisions along the length of the A9 between Perth and Inverness is compared with National Averages for Single and Dual Carriageway standard between 2015 and 2022, the A9 is noted to have a higher proportion of Fatal and Serious recorded collisions. In particular, it is noted that single carriageway sections of the A9 between Perth and Inverness have a significantly higher proportion of Fatal (13%) and Serious (31%) collisions than National Averages for similar road types (2% and 12% respectively). Note that figures presented below are rounded and may not add to 100%.

  • A9 Single Carriageway Perth to Inverness proportion of collisions:
  • 13% Fatal (National Average 2%);
  • 31% Serious (National Average 12%); and
  • 55% Slight (National Average 85%).
  • A9 Dual Carriageway Perth to Inverness proportion of collisions:
  • 4% Fatal (National Average 2%);
  • 25% Serious (National Average 8%); and
  • 72% Slight (90% National Average).

There are particular areas of concern along the length of the A9 Dualling Programme which are noted to have experienced a high frequency of Personal Injury Collisions (PICs) as well as a higher proportion of Serious and Fatal PICs than other sections of the route. It should be noted that these locations correspond to some of the higher volume sections of the route.

The wider Dunkeld area (Pass of Birnam to Ballinluig) has been identified as a particular area of concern. Of high concern is the identified cluster at the immediate proximity of the staggered A9, A923 and A822 junction which provides access to Dunkeld and neighbouring settlements. At these junctions there have been five Serious collisions and eight Slight collisions.

One of the A9 Dualling programme objectives, as stated in paragraph 2.5.10, aims to improve the safety of the A9 which will reduce accident rates and severity and reduce driver stress. 

Driver Stress

Following the introduction of revised DMRB guidance published in 2019, it is no longer a requirement to assess impacts on driver stress as a result of road schemes. Providing relief from driver stress caused by congestion is often one of the justifications behind the implementation of a road or junction improvement scheme; it would be counterintuitive to design a scheme which would exacerbate driver stress. As set out in paragraph 2.5.10, one of the objectives of the A9 Dualling programme, and hence the proposed scheme, is to reduce driver stress. 

It is expected that as a result of the operation of the proposed scheme, driver stress for those using the A9 and the connecting local road network would decrease due to an improved road layout, including but not limited to the grade separated junctions at Birnam and Dalguise and the Dunkeld roundabout. Traffic travelling along the A9 would be on a dual carriageway and not hindered by slower moving vehicles, and traffic joining the A9 from Dunkeld and Birnam would do so via new junctions designed to minimise delays associated with queuing and mitigating the need for potentially dangerous right turns across the path of traffic travelling in the opposite direction.

The construction phase of the proposed scheme is expected to require some diversion and disruption to traffic which may create delay and an associated increase to driver stress. However, these impacts would be temporary and will be managed by the Contractor through implementation of measures set out in a Traffic Management Plan to be agreed with PKC.

Tourism and Recreation

The A9 provides access between Perth and Inverness and is a conduit for travellers looking to visit various regions of Scotland. The area surrounding the proposed scheme offers a wide range of tourist attractions and recreational activities, which are supported by the A9.

Tourist attractions have been identified through site visits and review of the Visit Scotland website. There are tourist attractions throughout the proposed scheme although the main tourist attractions are located in or around Dunkeld and Birnam and in Pitlochry to the north of the proposed scheme. 

Within Dunkeld and Birnam there are several tourist attractions that offer sporting activities such as Progression Bikes, County Clays, The Canyoning Company and Paddle Surf Scotland. Dunkeld and Birnam also hold The Annual Niel Gow Festival which includes a variety of concerts, recitals and workshops with the Birnam Arts and Conference Centre hosting many of the festival’s events. The Birnam Arts Centre hosts a café, gallery, gift shop and Beatrix Potter experience as well as hosting a wide range of performances and events in its events spaces. Dunkeld and Birnam contains a wide range of other tourism related businesses and accommodation providers.

The Hermitage, located west of Inver, is owned by the National Trust for Scotland and offers scenic woodland walks, nature spotting and guided tours. Further afield, tourist and recreational attractions include Pitlochry Festival Theatre, Loch Faskally, the annual Enchanted Forest event, the Edradour and Blair Atholl distilleries and the Loch of the Lowes Visitor Centre. Additional information on tourism and recreation are provided in Chapter 16 (Population – Land Use) and Chapter 17 (Population - Accessibility).

With a level of employment accounted for by tourism, PKC LDP2 seeks to enhance tourism facilities and provision, partly achieved by upgrading the A9 to dual carriageway.

Existing transport provision, other than the existing A9, for access to tourism and recreation in the area includes the Highland Main Line railway, with the Dunkeld & Birnam Station located in the vicinity of the proposed scheme, bus stops at Inver which provide services to other towns and cities along with the network of National and Regional Cycle Routes and Core Paths. Additional information on community facilities and public access are provided in Chapter 16 (Population – Land Use) and Chapter 17 (Population - Accessibility).

The proposed scheme includes provision for active travel and improved integration with public transport facilities, including incorporating a replacement mainline bus stop at Inver, enhances access and connectivity to Dunkeld & Birnam Station and integrates and connects local path, core path and cycle networks. Additional information on community facilities and public access are provided in Chapter 16 (Population – Land Use) and Chapter 17 (Population - Accessibility).

A9 Dualling Programme Review

Following the IIP announcement in December 2011, two corridor-wide commissions were implemented to help develop a consistent approach to dualling design and assessment. These have informed progression of the proposed scheme from Pass of Birnam to Tay Crossing and are explained further in the following paragraphs. As noted in Chapter 1 (Introduction), these commissions were the Preliminary Engineering Services (PES) and Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) which are closely linked strategic studies that together identify the engineering and environmental constraints, issues, risks and opportunities to provide an equivalent assessment to the level of DMRB Stage 1 for the A9 Dualling programme as a whole.

Preliminary Engineering Services

The PES commission was awarded to Jacobs UK Ltd in September 2012 and involved engineering constraints mapping, corridor options work equivalent to a DMRB Stage 1 level of assessment, and other design strategies such as junction and access strategy, layby/rest area strategy, and non-motorised user (NMU) strategies.

The PES commission also included a number of early assessments to provide the basis for later progression of individual projects forming part of the overall A9 Dualling programme. These included geotechnical and topographical studies, business case development and implementation of a stakeholder engagement strategy.

Strategic Environmental Assessment

The SEA commission was awarded to Halcrow in September 2012, to be undertaken in parallel with the PES commission. The Environmental Assessment (Scotland) Act 2005 (Scottish Government, 2005) required SEA for all public sector plans, programmes and strategies with the potential for significant effects on the environment. Whilst an SEA was carried out as part of the STPR, it was determined that an SEA was required for the A9 Dualling programme specifically as it would provide the overall direction of the route alignment selection process, design, project-level EIA and later construction activities. SEA screening and scoping stages were completed by February 2013, with the Environmental Report reviewed in public consultation in June 2013 (Transport Scotland 2013a), allowing the environmental assessment stage to proceed. An SEA Addendum Report was published in March 2014 (Transport Scotland, 2014a) which collated and reviewed feedback from the consultation process. Consultation feedback following the publication of the SEA Addendum Report was then issued to complete supplementary strategic studies as discussed in paragraph 2.5.9.

In addition, an A9 SEA Post Adoption Statement was published in September 2014 (Transport Scotland, 2014b). The purpose of this report was to outline how the SEA findings and the comments received on the SEA Environmental Report (Transport Scotland, 2013) and SEA Addendum (Transport Scotland, 2014a) have been taken into account, including those from Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH, now NatureScot), Historic Environment Scotland (HES) and Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA).

The findings of the SEA, including the supporting strategic reviews, below, have informed the EIA process for the proposed scheme, and the SEA is therefore referred to where relevant in this EIAR.

Strategic Environmental Design Principles

One of the key outputs of the SEA process was the development of a range of Strategic Environmental Design Principles (listed in full in Appendix A2.1), which are included in the SEA Post Adoption Statement (Transport Scotland, 2014b). These Principles were developed through collaboration and review with Transport Scotland and the Environmental Steering Group (ESG) members as set out in Chapter 7 (Consultation and Scoping). The Principles are intended to represent the aims of the A9 Dualling programme, with respect to the commitment to the delivery of an environmentally led design process, and to highlight the issues that are of particular relevance to A9 Dualling programme.

The Strategic Environmental Design Principles are being considered on all A9 Dualling projects and through all stages of the design process and are referenced in the EIAR chapters where appropriate. It is accepted that not all Principles will be applicable or achievable in all situations and that the aims may conflict with each other and/or with road safety considerations. They are not intended as a replacement for existing requirements or standards; instead, they are intended to be considered as a set of aims that all A9 Dualling projects will seek to meet.

Other Strategic Reviews

In parallel with the PES and SEA work, a number of other strategic studies have been undertaken to consider potential effects of the wider programme of work, and/or to promote consistency between individual projects forming part of the overall A9 Dualling programme. These are listed below and are referred to in this EIAR where they have been taken into account:

  • Habitat Regulations Appraisal – Screening Report (Halcrow, 2013a).
  • Habitat Regulations Appraisal - Appropriate Assessment (Halcrow, 2013b).
  • Strategic Landscape Review Report (Transport Scotland, 2013b).
  • Strategic Flood Risk Assessment (Transport Scotland, 2013c).

A9 Dualling Programme Objectives

Since publication of STPR and the A9 Dualling: Case for Investment, further assessment of problems and opportunities along the existing A9 led to the development of A9 Dualling programme objectives set by Transport Scotland, as follows:

  • To improve the operational performance of the A9 by:

- reducing journey times; and

- improving journey time reliability.

  • To improve safety for motorised and non-motorised users by:

- reducing accident severity; and

- reducing driver stress.

  • To facilitate active travel within the corridor.
  • To improve integration with Public Transport Facilities.

References

National Legislation and EU Directives

Documents and Reports