- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 11 February 2025
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-33161 by Fiona Hyslop on 22 January 2025, how much has been spent on upgrading the 2,297 street lights on the A90 in each of the last five years, broken down by local authority area.
Answer
Please see the following table which provides the costs of upgrading the 2297 streetlights on the A90.
Activity | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | 2023-24 | 2024-25 |
Upgrading/Refurbishment | £152,661.01 | £472,649.31 | £153,868.18 | £208,247.81 | £11,355.70 |
Transport Scotland does not hold the above information by local authority area, and these figures are for the full length of the A90.
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 11 February 2025
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-33168 by Fiona Hyslop on 22 January 2025, what specific criteria are used to determine that all 140 overbridges and overpasses on the A90 are in an “acceptable condition.”
Answer
Bridges are inspected in accordance with the National Standard CS 450 Inspection of Highway Structures and the condition is ranked and prioritised in accordance with the requirements of The Inspection Manual for Highway Structures Volume 1 and the Transport Scotland Structures Manual.
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 11 February 2025
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-33161 by Fiona Hyslop on 22 January 2025, what plans are in place to further upgrade street lighting along the A90, including (a) timelines and (b) estimated costs.
Answer
Transport Scotland’s Ancillary Assets Scheme Development Guidance provides direction on the identification, development and assessment of potential lighting schemes to ensure that funding is spent on the most deserving sites that offer best value with a demonstrable maintenance need. The protocol requires our Operating Companies to develop a 3 year programme that details all planned maintenance works. The following table lists the current draft A90 lighting maintenance plans.
Route | Location | Additional Info | Financial Year | Estimated Cost (£) |
A90 | Inchture | At Eastbound and Westbound slips roundabout | 26-27 | 200,000 |
A90 | Inchmichael Interchange | At bottom of Westbound on slip | 27-28 | 80,000 |
A90 | Fintry Roundabout to Emmock Roundabout | LHS William Fitzgerald Way | 28-29 | 110,000 |
A90 | Quilkoe Junction | B9128 on RHS | 28-29 | 220,000 |
A90 | Stracathro | On west side of over bridge | 28-29 | 200,000 |
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 11 February 2025
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-33168 by Fiona Hyslop on 22 January 2025, how it ensures that regular inspections of A90 overbridges and overpasses are carried out in compliance with relevant safety standards and best practices.
Answer
Transport Scotland officials oversee the work of our contractors. They collaborate across disciplines and contractual boundaries to ensure work is completed in the areas of most need and that it represents best value.
Officials are supported by the Performance Audit Group (PAG). PAG is employed by the Scottish Ministers to provide independent auditing of the Operating Companies’ performance to ensure that the requirements of the contract are met, that work is carried out to the required technical specification, and that financial valuations are correct.
Officials work in partnership with PAG to manage contract risks in accordance with Scottish Government policy. The most significant risks are transferred to Roads Directorate’s risk register for completeness.
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 11 February 2025
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-33161 by Fiona Hyslop on 22 January 2025, how much has been spent on maintaining the 2,297 street lights on the A90 in each of the last five years, broken down by local authority area.
Answer
Please see the following table which provides the costs of maintaining the 2297 streetlights on the A90.
Activity | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | 2023-24 | 2024-25 |
Maintenance | £2,713.53 | £8,884.67 | £850.77 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
Transport Scotland does not hold the above information by local authority area, and these figures are for the full length of the A90.
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 11 February 2025
To ask the Scottish Government how many emergency telephones are installed on the A90, broken down by the (a) section north of Dundee and (b) other sections.
Answer
There are seven emergency telephones installed on the A90 north of Dundee and two on other sections of the A90.
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 11 February 2025
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-33168 by Fiona Hyslop on 22 January 2025, whether Transport Scotland has conducted any assessments on the potential impact of severe weather events, such as those experienced during Storm Babet, on the structural integrity of the A90 overbridges and overpasses.
Answer
Transport Scotland has developed an Approach to Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience (ACCAR), which provides a strategic overview of our approach primarily on infrastructure and services directly under Transport Scotland control. A key deliverable of this work is the development of a Trunk Road Adaptation Plan, based on a climate vulnerability and risk assessment using the latest UK climate projections. The Trunk Road Adaptation Plan will be published in 2025. It includes key interventions and recommendations for further adapting the Trunk Road Network. There will be a focus on risks associated with increased surface water flooding, river flooding, river scour and landslides.
The Trunk Road Adaptation Plan will complement the work of our roads Vulnerable Locations Operational Group (VLOG), which was established in 2021 in line with the commitments set out in the National Transport Strategy Delivery Plan 2020 – 2022 with an initial focus on delivering short-term cost-effective actions, whilst developing a move to a long-term proactive approach, including a dedicated budget for climate change adaptation.
The VLOG has targeted resource on early flood level warning systems around A90 river crossings and undertaken specific bridge scour assessments and inspections to national standards to enable resources to be focused on potential future risk areas
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 11 February 2025
To ask the Scottish Government how often emergency telephones on the A90, including the section north of Dundee, have been used in the past five years.
Answer
In the past five years 51 calls have been received on the emergency telephones on the A90 north of Dundee.
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 11 February 2025
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-33168 by Fiona Hyslop on 22 January 2025, what the expected (a) timeline and (b) costs are for completing ongoing repairs to the A90 Finavon Bridge, which was damaged during Storm Babet.
Answer
The current estimated costs are £716,432.40. However, this may increase as the investigation and design for the permanent works progresses.
Construction is anticipated to be complete by the end of September 2025. However, investigations and permanent works design are still ongoing. Ecological factors at the site will also severely affect the available construction window
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 11 February 2025
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-33168 by Fiona Hyslop on 22 January 2025, what funding has been allocated for maintenance and repair work on the A90 overbridges and overpasses over the last five years.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-33160 on 22 January 2025. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers