A82 Tarbet to Inverarnan and Pulpit Rock STAG appraisal: FOI release

Information requested

Point 1:

Thank you for your past assistance. I am still trying to understand how TfS did not follow its own rules (and the Law) and carry out an STAG Appraisal on Tarbet to Inverarnan. The closest I can get is the STAG REVIEW REPORT for Pulpit Rock. The first pertinent section of that reads:

2.4.2 All major road schemes to be subject to full STAG Appraisal. (For) smaller road schemes less than £5m the full STAG Appraisal may not be appropriate . Although the A82 Pulpit Rock Scheme shown may (did) exceed £5m it has been agreed that the small scheme appraisal method should be used.

Clearly someone was worried that the law was being broken. I should be grateful if you could send me all correspondence both in writing and by email between TfS and the consultants Scott- Wilson on this agreement.

Point 2: 

The first conclusion of the report reads :

3.1.1 ... it is concluded that the work previously carried out (for the A82 Route Action Plan) is equivalent to the requirements of STAG.

TfS have subsequently stated that the work was compatible with STAG. Since any reading of the RAP is that it covers only a subset of the topics that would be covered in a full STAG Appraisal and is not based on the Principles of STAG, could you please send any correspondence that suggest that TfS accepted that conclusion and the final conclusion.

Point 3: 

3.1.4 It is considered that requirements of the STAG Part1 Assessment are met through the appraisal reported in the Route Action Plan

Since a STAG Review Report was commissioned for Pulpit Rock presumably a similar report was undertaken for the whole Tarbet to Inverarnan scheme. Please could you send this report or any/all correspondence that confirms that TfS decided that it should not be undertaken.

Point 4: 

Finally Mr Stackman has indicated that the core “Principle of Place” detailed in STAG was not applicable when the RAP was produced. His conclusion is that DMRB and the RAP are based on the principles of STAG as defined at that time (2006) although they are not now. Whilst I am loathe to suggest Mr Stackman is deliberately misleading my MSP, please could you send me a copy of the STAG documentation in 2006 (the publication date of the RAP). My own hard copy has long since gone; obviously Mr Stackman still has a copy as he referred to it.

As the information you have requested is ‘environmental information’ for the purposes of the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (EIRs), we are required to deal with your request under those Regulations. We are applying the exemption at section 39(2) of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA), so that we do not also have to deal with your request under FOISA.

This exemption is subject to the ‘public interest test’. Therefore, taking account of all the circumstances of this case, we have considered if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exemption. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding the exemption, because there is no public interest in dealing with the same request under two different regimes. This is essentially a technical point and has no material effect on the outcome of your request.

Response

Point 1: 

Please see attached correspondence contained within Annex A to this letter.

Please note, an exception under regulation 11(2) of the EIRs (personal information) applies to some of the information as published because it is personal data of a third party and disclosing it would contravene the data protection principles in Schedule 1 to the Data Protection Act 1998. This exception is not subject to the ‘public interest test’, so we are not required to consider if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exception.

Point 2: 

Under the terms of the exception at regulation 10(4)(a) of the EIRs (information not held), the Scottish Government is not required to provide information which it does not have.

As per your clarification email of 7 November 2022 and my acknowledgement email of 9 November 2022, the use of the word “compatible” was in reference to the work done on the Strategic Transport Project Review (STPR) from 2008 and was not used in reference to the work done on the A82 Route Action Plan (RAP) from 2006, which is mentioned in the conclusions to the A82 Pulpit Rock STAG review Report, and was the opening subject of your email request dated 2 November 2022.

This exception is subject to the 'public interest test'. Therefore, taking account of all the circumstances of this case, we have considered if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exception. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding the exception. While we recognise that there may be some public interest in such information, we clearly we cannot provide information which we do not hold.

Point 3: 

Under the terms of the exception at regulation 10(4)(a) of the EIRs (information not held), the Scottish Government is not required to provide information which it does not have. The Scottish Government does not have the information you have requested because there is no correspondence which confirms that a decision was taken that a “similar” report to the STAG Review Report commissioned for Pulpit Rock should not be undertaken.

This exception is subject to the 'public interest test'. Therefore, taking account of all the circumstances of this case, we have considered if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exception. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding the exception. While we recognise that there may be some public interest in such information, we clearly we cannot provide information which we do not hold.

As previously confirmed to you in our letter dated 19 May 2022 under reference 202200298050, the options appraisal process for the A82 Tarbet to Inverarnan scheme was undertaken in a manner underpinned by the principles of STAG and the Design Manual for Roads and Bridges (DMRB). The work undertaken to support the first Strategic Projects Review (STPR 2008) identification of potential interventions for the A82 improvement scheme was consistent with STAG appraisal requirements.

A verification and validation process complying with STAG was undertaken as part of the early stages of development of the A82 Tarbet to Inverarnan scheme in order to confirm that the previously identified problems, issues and constraints were still valid. This process was subsequently supplemented with the DMRB Stage 1 Assessment in order to support the Strategic Business Case for the scheme. Appendix B of the Strategic Business Case incorporates the STAG Part 1 Appraisal Summary Tables, which include an assessment of the options against the STAG criteria, namely Environment, Economy, Accessibility and Social Inclusion.

It may assist further if I could refer you to the A82 Tarbet to Inverarnan Strategic Business Case (SBC) (a link to which was provided to you in our response dated 23 February 2022 to FoI request referenced 202200276096) Page 7, Section 1.1 states:-

“The STPR effectively provides a high-level Strategic Business Case for all 29 interventions set out in the STPR, including the A82 route.

As the final report of the STPR was published in October 2009, an early stage of the current commission is to prepare a Strategic Business Case (SBC) for the A82 TIU scheme that sets out a high-level assessment and re confirms justification for implementing significant road improvements on this section of the A82.

…early discussions with Transport Scotland have concluded that previous preliminary assessment work undertaken to support the STPR identification of potential interventions for the A82 was consistent with STAG appraisal requirements and there is no need, therefore, to undertake a further full STAG appraisal for the Tarbet to Inverarnan section of the A82. It is considered more appropriate that a verification and validation is undertaken, complying with STAG, to confirm previous problems, issues and constraints are still valid, in order to support a SBC for the scheme.”

Section 4 of the SBC summarises the initial stage of the ‘STAG verification’; confirming that previously identified problems, constraints and drivers for change on A82 Tarbet to Inverarnan, as identified via the previous studies including STPR 2008, were still present and valid.

In addition to the sub-standard route geometry, lay-by and accident rate issues identified in SBC Section 2, it also notes that the A82 lacks footpath/ cycleway connections, accessibility for nonmotorised users (NMU) is poor, including for public transport, and bus users in particular.

When considered in combination, the descriptive content in SBC Sections 2, 3 and 4 aligns with STAG Pre-Appraisal requirements on Analysis of Problems and Opportunities.

Section 5 of the SBC aligns with STAG Pre-Appraisal requirements on Objective Setting and Section 6 aligns with STAG Pre-Appraisal requirements on Option Generation, Sifting and Development.

Point 4: 

In our letter of 13 October 2022 addressed to Ms Jackie Ballie MSP under reference 202200322038, we confirm that:-

“The STAG Guidance that was in use at the time of STPR (2008) and was applicable during the DMRB Stage 1 assessment process for the A82 Tarbet to Inverarnan scheme, was STAG 2008, and consideration of the Place Principle was not a requirement of the guidance at that time.”

Under regulation 6(1)(b) of the EIRs, we do not have to give you information which is already publicly available and easily accessible to you in another form or format however, in an effort to assist with your request please find enclosed attached link to STAG published in 2008 as referenced in the context of our correspondence to Ms Jackie Baillie MSP:-

Scottish Transport Appraisal Guidance

A link to the STAG published in 2003 which was in place at the time the A82 Route Action Plan was produced can be found here:-

STAG Technical Database Archive | Transport Scotland (webarchive.org.uk)

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Annex A - 202200328253

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