page_title: A9 road (Scotland)
section_title: Upgrades
hierarchical_section_title: A9 road (Scotland) / Upgrades
caption_attribution_description: The split level dual carriageway between Dalnacardoch and Dalnaspidal, looking south.
context_page_description: The A9 is a major road running from the Falkirk council area in central Scotland to Scrabster Harbour, Thurso in the far north, via Stirling, Bridge of Allan, Perth and Inverness. At 273 miles, it is the longest road in Scotland and the fifth-longest A-road in the United Kingdom. Historically it was the main road between Edinburgh and John o' Groats, and has been called the spine of Scotland.
  The road's origins lie in the military roads building programme of the 18th century, further supplemented by the building of several bridges in later years. The A9 route was formally designated in 1923, and originally ran from Edinburgh to Inverness. The route was soon extended north from Inverness up to John O'Groats. By the 1970s the route was hampered by severe traffic congestion, and an extensive upgrading programme was undertaken on the 138 mile section between Bridge of Allan and Inverness. This involved the bypassing of numerous towns and villages on the route, and the building of several new bridges, notably the Kessock Bridge which shortened the route north out of Inverness by 14 miles.
  In the south the road's importance has been eclipsed by:
context_section_description: The 138 mile (222 km) section between Bridge of Allan and Inverness, via Perth, was substantially rebuilt during the 1970s and 80s, but it follows essentially the same route except where it bypasses towns and villages instead of running through their centres. Between Perth and Inverness, the road has been dubbed Killer A9, because of accidents and fatalities where dual-carriageway sections merge into single-carriageway - the principal cause being motorists driving at excessive speeds to overtake lines of slower-moving vehicles before the dual carriageway ends. Dangerous overtaking manoeuvres on the long single-carriageway stretches of the road are also common causes of accidents, as are the non-grade separated junctions along the northern sections, where drivers make a right turn across the opposing traffic flow.
  The most significant alteration of the A9 route was the realignment of the route north from Inverness, crossing the Moray Firth via the Kessock Bridge, cutting through the Black Isle and back across the Cromarty Firth.  This shortened the route by 14 miles, bypassing Beauly, Muir of Ord and Dingwall.  Construction of the Kessock Bridge began in 1976 and it was completed in 1982.
  Since 2007, the Scottish Government has given serious consideration to converting the entire Perth-Inverness section to dual carriageway with more grade separated junctions, with the initial estimated cost at £600 million.  In late 2008 the Scottish Government's transport plan for the next 20 years was announced. It brought forward planned improvements to the A9 in an attempt to stimulate the economy and protect jobs.  Work costing a total of £8.5 million was undertaken at Moy, Carrbridge and Bankfoot. Northbound overtaking lanes were created and the carriageway was reconstructed at both Moy and Carrbridge. Junction improvements were also made at Moy and at the Ballinluig junction, south of Pitlochry.
  In November 2011 the Scottish Government announced that it would upgrade the entire road from Perth to Inverness to dual carriageway. The design contract was split into three lots with Lot 1 (Glengarry to Dalraddy) awarded to a CH2MHill/Fairhurst joint venture in April 2014.  Lot 2 (Pass of Birnam to Glengarry) was awarded to Jacobs in August 2014 and Lot 3 was awarded to an Atkins/Mouchel joint venture in December 2014.  Award of the construction contract for a preliminary section (outwith Lots 1 to 3) of the £3 billion project was awarded in June 2015, and work began on the five mile section between Kincraig and Dalraddy (just south of Aviemore) in September 2015. After a slight delay this section was opened to traffic on 30 September 2017. The full scheme is scheduled to be completed in 2025.
  In July 2013, the Scottish Government announced a plan to install average speed cameras on the A9 between Perth and Inverness. This has been undertaken with an aim to reduce accidents and fatalities on the road, and will be the second permanent average speed camera scheme in Scotland. Simultaneously, an increased speed limit for heavy goods vehicles from 40mph to 50mph was introduced to help mitigate driver frustration. The A9 ASCS proposal has met with opposition, with a Facebook campaign opposed to the introduction of average speed cameras attracting close to 10,000 supporters. Despite objections, the cameras became operational in October 2014. The A9 Safety Group claim that the cameras have had a "positive influence" on road users, although there has been a slight increase in journey times. Improvements to safety include at least 40% reduction in fatalities, and this has been attributed, at least in part, to a reduction in speeding, from 1 in 3 vehicles to just 1 in 15.
caption: One of the sections of dual carriageway built in the late 1970s/ early 1980s; this is the section in the north of Perthshire between Dalnacardoch and Dalnaspidal
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