Born in 1946 and brought up in Cupar, Fife, I was educated at the local school - 8th January 2009
A9
4. Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will complete the dualling of the A9 from Perth to Inverness as set out in the strategic transport projects review. (S3O-5349)
The Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change (Stewart Stevenson):
We have a fully committed programme of transport infrastructure investment to 2012 that targets improvements to the A9. Dualling the A9 is a Government commitment. We are delighted that for the first time the project is included in a national transport strategy in Scotland. Furthermore, design work to dual the Birnam to Luncarty station section of the road is progressing currently.
The strategic transport projects review now provides a robust framework of schemes, the delivery of which will be prioritised in each spending review. A timetable for undertaking further work on the A9 upgrade from Perth to Inverness will be developed as part of the prioritisation process. That will be set in the context of overall affordability and our commitments to other STPR proposals.
Murdo Fraser: I am surprised that the minister is being so equivocal on the question of the completion date. On 11 December, that fine paper The Press and Journal reported that
"a source close to First Minister Alex Salmond",
no less, revealed that the dualling of the A9
"will be completed by 2020"—
no ifs, no buts, no qualifications and no suggestions that that is dependent on what the Treasury may or may not say about Forth bridge funding. Will the minister indicate clearly whether the road will be dualled by 2020—yes or no—and if not, why not?
Stewart Stevenson: The member will be aware that previous Governments of which his colleagues were part and Governments made up of other parties failed to make the kind of commitment that this Government is making to the A9. The substantial investment that is being made has been widely welcomed in the whole of the Highlands and at the southern end of the A9. The member should have absolutely no doubt about the Government's commitment to the A9 and about the fact that we will not wait until 2020 to make appropriate progress on the road. We are making such progress now and will continue to do so.
Dave Thompson (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): What is the Government's estimate of the total investment in transport infrastructure in the Highlands that is contained in the STPR? How does that compare with the investment that was made by previous Scottish and United Kingdom Governments in the 20 years prior to the STPR?
Stewart Stevenson: I thank the member for giving me the opportunity to reinforce some aspects of my previous answer. I do not have with me the entire list of interventions, but I have one or two of them, which amount to £4.2 billion—a very substantial investment that has already been widely welcomed and is unprecedented in modern times, if we compare it with the interventions of all previous Administrations.
Des McNulty (Clydebank and Milngavie) (Lab): We have had no dates from the minister, so I ask him to give some dates in response to this question. When will the Government implement a programme of road widening on the A82 at selected locations between Tarbet and Inverarnan and between Corran ferry and Fort William?
Stewart Stevenson: We are aware of the issues relating to the A82. As I said in answer to a question from John Scott in December, there were 13 deaths on the road in 2007. For that reason, we are treating as a matter of urgency the issue of improvements that are geared towards creating greater safety on the A82. I note that constraints on the A82, such as traffic lights, have been in place for 20 years or more, so it is welcome in the west of Scotland that, at last, this Government is engaging to provide in early course the improvements that are necessary to improve safety on one of Scotland's more dangerous roads.
