Scottish Government is preparing to buy land to dual Inverness to Nairn on the A96

Transport secretary Fiona Hyslop has confirmed that the Scottish Government is now preparing to buy the land to dual the A96 from Inverness to Nairn in what is a major development.

The move was announced before The Inverness Courier’s Build the Bypass event tonight in Nairn with Ms Hyslop and others including MSP Fergus Ewing and community leaders and industry representatives.

The Made Orders were published in March – they deal with things like trunking the road, side roads, overriding public right of way and other issues – but crucially the transport secretary confirmed that “no challenge” had been received.

That means the dualling for the Nairn bypass can proceed to the next and perhaps most difficult stage which is finding the cash for the work “with initial work to determine the most suitable procurement option for delivering it.”

Ms Hyslop said: “I understand the importance of the A96 Dualling Inverness to Nairn (including the Nairn Bypass) scheme to those living and working in the town of Nairn and the wider area and we are committed to delivering it.

“The publication of the Made Orders for the scheme in March was a strong sign of our commitment to build this key project and I’m looking forward to attending tonight’s event in Nairn to further reiterate that commitment.

“I am pleased to confirm that no challenge to the Made Orders was received, which now completes the statutory process and clears the way for us to acquire the land required to construct it.

“We’re also progressing the work to determine the most suitable procurement option for delivering the scheme to enable us to construct it as soon as we can in line with available budgets.

“This work has already commenced and we will shortly be procuring financial advisors to assist with this vital work. Once completed, we will then be in a position to set a timetable for delivering the scheme.

“When completed, the dualling scheme will bring many benefits to local communities, businesses, visitors and road users living in the north and north east of Scotland, including reduced journey times, improved journey time reliability, further opportunities for active travel and, crucially, improved road safety.”

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