Publication - FOI/EIR release

A96 Dualling at Inverurie – Dualling Feasibility and Appraisal report questions: EIR release

Published: 9 August 2019
Topic: Public sector, Transport
FOI reference: FOI/19/01647
Date received: 10 July 2019
Date responded: 8 August 2019

Information request and response under the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004.

Information requested

You asked for the following information in relation to the A96 Dualling East of Huntly to Aberdeen Online at Inverurie – Dualling Feasibility and Appraisal report:-

...all and any information, data (including, but not limited to, the dates on which data/information were/was collected and reports written), dated correspondence etc to show that there are no real benefits to local traffic in Inverurie, and to provide evidence of the volume of traffic in AADT from the north of Inverurie that reaches the A96.

...all and any information, data (including, but not limited to, the dates on which data/information were/was collected and reports written), dated correspondence etc in relation to the Environmental appraisal for online dualling of the existing A96 route through Inverurie.

…all and any information, data (including, but not limited to, the dates on which data/information were/was collected and reports written), dated correspondence etc in relation to the numbers of demolitions and encroachments indicated above in conjunction with the online dualling of the A96 at Inverurie.

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.

Traffic Assessment
To inform the traffic assessment of route options, Transport Scotland has developed the A96 Corridor Route Assignment Model (CRAM), a strategic traffic model of the full A96 corridor from Inverness to Aberdeen. The base model was developed in 2012 and is informed by a comprehensive database of traffic and planning data, including permanent traffic data sources which provide a long-term record of traffic patterns. This is supplemented by traffic surveys undertaken specifically for the A96 Dualling East of Huntly to Aberdeen scheme to capture local traffic patterns. The model has been refined several times to improve local traffic behaviour, with the latest revision occurring in 2018.

A comprehensive set of traffic surveys, including Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) surveys, were used to check that the model continues to realistically reflect traffic patterns in and around Inverurie, including traffic routeing through Inverurie from the north of the town. Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) surveys were carried out on Tuesday 18th November 2014 and Tuesday 27th March 2018. These surveys use cameras which automatically read vehicle number plates and record the time that the image was captured. Using this data individual vehicles can be tracked as they move into, out of, and through the survey area. In particular the origin and destination of the vehicle can be determined, including trips travelling to the A96 from areas north of Inverurie.

Please find enclosed the following reports detailing AmeyArup’s analysis of the 2018 ANPR survey and additional survey data collected in 2018:

ANPR Survey (27/03/2018) Technical Note
A96 ANPR Journey Time Analysis
A96 2012 Traffic Data Analysis
Spring 2018 Traffic Survey Analysis
Inverurie Traffic Surveys 2012-18 Technical Note

Please note that as the cumulative size of the actual ANPR survey results and Appendices to the A96 2012 Traffic Data Analysis and Spring 2018 Traffic Survey Analysis reports is just over 141Mb a DvD containing this information will be issued separately by post, along with a copy of this letter.

To comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), sensitive data (i.e. vehicle registration plates) has been removed, however, all other data remains as provided by the survey company. Analysis of the 2018 ANPR surveys show that in the AM and PM peaks, approximately 30% of traffic on the A96 originates from or is destined for areas to the north of Inverurie.

The traffic impacts of the online dualling options were assessed using the CRAM model, as reported in the ‘Online at Inverurie - Dualling Feasibility and Appraisal’ Report a copy of which is available from the Transport Scotland website at https://www.transport.gov.scot/media/44577/online-at-inverurie-dualling-feasibility-and-appraisal-east-of-huntly-to-aberdeen-a96-dualling.pdf.

Further details can also be found in the ‘First Fix Alignment Workshop Report’ a copy of which is available from the Transport Scotland website at: https://www.transport.gov.scot/publication/dmrb-stage-2-early-sifting-reports-east-of-huntly-to-aberdeen-a96-dualling/.

Environment Assessment
The assessment, including environmental, engineering, economic and traffic considerations, of online dualling through Inverurie was carried out in 2018 as part of the initial route options assessment work.

Details of the environmental assessment work undertaken is available in the published ‘Corridor Options Workshop Report’, ‘First Fix Alignment Workshop Report’ and ‘Route Options Sifting Workshop Report’. A copy of these reports are available from the Transport Scotland website at: https://www.transport.gov.scot/publication/dmrb-stage-2-early-sifting-reports-east-of-huntly-to-aberdeen-a96-dualling/

Demolition
The deselection of online dualling at Inverurie was confirmed at the Initial Route Options public exhibitions held in October 2018. A copy of the material presented at these exhibitions is available from the Transport Scotland website at https://www.transport.gov.scot/publication/exhibition-materials-public-exhibitions-october-2018-east-of-huntly-to-aberdeen-a96-dualling/.

The “Online at Inverurie - Dualling Feasibility and Appraisal” report (https://www.transport.gov.scot/publication/online-at-inverurie-dualling-feasibility-and-appraisal-east-of-huntly-to-aberdeen-a96-dualling/) confirms that online dualling of the existing A96 at Inverurie would require property demolition. Details of the properties which would be affected by online dualling of the A96 at Inverurie (demolition and encroachment) was presented at the Route options – design update drop in sessions held in May 2019. A copy of the information presented at the engagement events is available from the Transport Scotland website at https://www.transport.gov.scot/publication/exhibition-materials-may-2019-east-of-huntly-to-aberdeen-a96-dualling/.

About FOI
The Scottish Government is committed to publishing all information released in response to Freedom of Information requests. View all FOI responses at http://www.gov.scot/foi-responses.