River Don Crossing for the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route: EIR release

Information requested

 

Could I please request the following information regarding the River Don Crossing for the AWPR at Dyce, Aberdeen.

1. The length of the bridge ie from embankment to embankment.

2. The width of the bridge at its widest point.

3. The original estimated cost for the bridge.

4. The final cost once all repairs are completed and the bridge is finished.

 

Response

 

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.

1.    The length of the River Don Crossing is 280 metres.

2.    The width of the River Don Crossing, at its widest point, is 28 metres.

3.    While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the Transport Scotland does not have the information you have requested. Due to the Design Build Finance and Operate (DBFO) procurement model for the AWPR/B-T project, the breakdown of costs for individual structures are not held by Transport Scotland and cannot be disaggregated from the cost information held. Under the terms of the exception at regulation 10(4)(a) of the EIRs (information not held), Transport Scotland is not required to provide information which it does not have.

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. While we recognise there may be some public interest in the cost of the River Don Crossing, clearly we cannot provide information which we do not hold.

4.    While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the Transport Scotland does not have the information you have requested. Due to the Design Build Finance and Operate (DBFO) procurement model for the AWPR/B-T project, the breakdown of costs for individual structures are not held by Transport Scotland and cannot be disaggregated from the cost information held. Under the terms of the exception at regulation 10(4)(a) of the EIRs (information not held), Transport Scotland is not required to provide information which it does not have.

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. While we recognise there may be some public interest in the cost of the River Don Crossing, clearly we cannot provide information which we do not hold.

 

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