Council welcomes Scottish Government's infrastructure plans
7th December 2011
The Highland Council has welcomed the Scottish Government's plans for substantial investment in Scotland's rail network; the dualling of road network between all of Scotland's cities, including the A 9 Perth - Inverness and the A96 Inverness - Aberdeen road; and the upgrading of the A 82 between Fort William and Crianlarich.
The Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure and Capital Investment, Alex Neil, made the pledge as he published the Scottish Government's Infrastructure and Investment Plan, which details plans for up to £60 billion of spending right up until 2030.
Councillor John Laing, Chairman of the Council's Transport Environmental and Community Services, said: "Effective transport communications are vital to the future prosperity of the Highlands so this commitment to improving our roads and rail network is hugely encouraging.
"As ever the proof of the pudding will be in the eating, but this aspiration to invest in our infrastructure must be warmly welcomed.
"Our priority will be to see dualling of the A 96 between Inverness and Inverness Airport; the construction of a major new link from the A96 at Smithton to the A9 and a by-pass of Nairn.
"We also recognise the need for improvements on the A9 north of Inverness, particularly at Berriedale Braes and on the A 82 between Inverness and Crianlarich and improvements in the rail network to speed up travel to Aberdeen and the south."
The Scottish Government's Infrastructure and Investment `plan includes 54 major infrastructure projects and 33 programmes, across a range of areas, including schools, hospitals and housing.
Key points include:
•Transport - the Scottish Government will dual the A9 between Perth and Inverness by 2025, with a view to completing dualling of the A96 and the dualled road network between all our cities by 2030; complete construction of replacement crossing over the Firth of Forth by 2016, and invest in substantial rail improvements, reducing journey times between Edinburgh and Glasgow, from Aberdeen to the central belt, Aberdeen to Inverness and on the Highland Main line
•The plan includes high speed rail, and estimates a cost of £15 billion for completion of the route, from North West England to Scotland, with a Scottish contribution of £8 - 9 billion. Minister's will continue to press for this to come to Scotland at the earliest opportunity, although final decisions on timing and route rest with the Westminster Government
Related Businesses
Related Articles
Yesterday
Council welcomes Visitor Levy flexibility plan
The Highland Council welcomes moves by the Scottish Government to introduce greater flexibility on how it could design a Visitor Levy Scheme for consultation. The Visitor Levy (Scotland) Act 2024 currently provides local authorities with discretionary powers to implement percentage-based levies following statutory consultation.Yesterday
Highland Council is reaching out for views to shape its next 26/27 budget.
As it looks to set out its forthcoming priorities, the council is seeking involvement from members of the public, including businesses, community groups, parents, and young people. All their opinions are going to be crucial in deciding how Highland Council will take on its budget challenge for 2026-2027.Yesterday
Have your say in Thurso's future £100million investment by attending public consultation events
Thurso is to benefit from £100m investment in education and community facilities and are rolling out the first phase of public consultations on 9 and 10 December 2025. The Highland Council is inviting people that live, work, or study in Thurso, to come along to the public consultation events to have their say; this is an opportunity to help shape the future of Thurso, to gather views and ideas.2/12/2025
Finding new owners for empty homes - Scheme launched to help return more empty homes to active use
A new online portal has been launched to bring empty homeowners together with prospective buyers or developers with the aim of facilitating more properties to be used as homes again. Covering the whole of Scotland, this builds on the success of local pilots, referred to as "matchmaker schemes".1/12/2025
Consideration for short term let control area in Skye and Raasay
Steps towards introducing a short term let control area have been considered by Highland Council's Isle of Skye and Raasay area committee. On Monday (1 December 2025) the committee heard evidence to justify the grounds for the introduction of a Short Term Let Control Area covering all or part of Skye and Raasay.28/11/2025
Workforce North event spotlights Highland economy
EMPLOYERS and educators from across the Highlands have gathered to hear how a new initiative is aiming to transform the region's economy. Workforce North - A Call to Action brought together business leaders and teachers from primary and secondary schools from across the Highland Council area with a wide range of partners geared towards education, learning and skills development at Strathpeffer Pavillion.
27/11/2025
Council calls for meaningful engagement from Home Office Over 300 Asylum Seekers Being Sent to Inverness
The Highland Council continues to call for meaningful engagement from the Home Office over its plans to temporarily accommodate up to 300 adult male asylum seekers at Cameron Barracks, Inverness. It follows an email on Monday from Alex Norris MP, Minister for Border Security and Asylum, to Council Leader, Raymond Bremner, which failed to answer questions raised by the Council or address community concerns.27/11/2025
SSEN Transmission becomes first signatory to Highland Social Value Charter
SSEN Transmission has become the first company to sign up to the Highland Social Value Charter (HSVC), marking a significant milestone in delivering long-term socio-economic benefits for communities across the Highlands. Investment commitments from the company include funding for roads, new homes, jobs, and work for local contractors in addition to a local and regional fund for communities to apply to.25/11/2025
Wick - Aberdeen PSO - Update issued 24/11/2025
The Highland Council continues to work through the procurement process for the provision of the Wick Public Service Obligation for the Highland Council. We have now entered the preferred bidder stage and have entered a standstill period.25/11/2025
Highland Council winter road condition and school closure report for 25 November 2025
Maps of the Council's gritting routes by priority and policy are available online at www.highland.gov.uk/gritting (external link) The information provided is a summary of reports from operational staff and is intended to give a general indication of typical conditions in each area at a point in time. It is not intended to imply that any individual route is entirely snow and ice free and drivers must be aware that conditions can change rapidly and make their own assessment of conditions for travelling.
Our Social Media
