Balfour Beatty has been awarded a £185 million contract by Transport Scotland to dual the A9 in the Scottish Highlands.
The contractor is set to upgrade 9.6 kilometres of single carriageway between Tomatin and Moy, south of Inverness.
It also plans to construct four major bridges along the route, deliver new side roads together with various junction upgrades and provide more than 10 kilometres of improved cycling and walking routes in the local area.
The project is aimed to improve road safety, journey times and reliability for all road users, as well as generate economic growth and strengthen the link between Scotland’s central belt and the Highlands and Islands.
Balfour plans to reduce its carbon emissions during the construction phase by sourcing local materials,to help reduce heavy goods vehicle movements and deliveries to and from site.
The company also seeks to use 4D planning to digitally plan and rehearse the construction sequence of two of the bridges.
This follows the announcement from the Scottish Government that Balfour Beatty were tipped to win the bid last month once the completion of a mandatory standstill period had successfully concluded.
The project forms part of Transport Scotland’s multi-billion pound A9 Dualling Programme, marking the third section of the programme to begin once two sections of the programme are finished.
The programme aims to achieve a delivery plan for A9 Dualling, between Perth and Inverness by 2035.
Hector MacAulay MBE, managing director of Balfour Beatty’s regional business in Scotland, said: “We are pleased to have been appointed to deliver the latest phase of the A9 dualling programme, building on our proven track record of successful major infrastructure delivery.
“The A9 Dualling: Tomatin to Moy project will continue to deliver far reaching benefits to the Scottish economy, creating hundreds of new jobs and stimulating growth of business communities, especially in the tourism industry, as well as improving road user safety.”
In June, The Inverness Courier reported that A9 single carriageways are twice as deadly as dual carriageways as the SNP has come under fire over dualling failures.
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