Publication - FOI/EIR release

Vehicle Restraint System (VRS) installed on the A7: EIR release

Published: 24 July 2026
Topic: Public sector, Transport
FOI reference: FOI/202600509731
Date received: 5 March 2026
Date responded: 1 April 2026

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

Information requested

Under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002, I request the following information regarding the Vehicle Restraint System (VRS) installed on the A7 near Boleside House, TD1 3NT, in or around 2024.

Pedestrian and Vulnerable User Assessments

Please provide the Walking, Cycling and Horse Riding Assessment and Review (WCHAR) undertaken for this scheme in accordance with DMRB standard GG 142.

If no WCHAR was undertaken, please provide the recorded rationale for exclusion.

Please also provide any Equality Impact Assessment (EqIA) or similar assessment considering impacts on pedestrians or other non-motorised users at this location, including consideration of access between the A7 and the River Tweed.

Consultation and Stakeholder Engagement

BEAR Scotland indicated that properties were contacted during the design stage. Please provide:

Copies of consultation letters issued
A description of the properties or stakeholders contacted (with personal data redacted where necessary)
Any stakeholder or consultation list used during the design or approval process

Please also provide all correspondence with Scottish Borders Council Rangers and the Scottish Rights of Way and Access Society (ScotWays) regarding access, paths, or rights of way at this location.

Please provide any correspondence with Laggan Estates relating to the installation of the VRS or consent for the works.

Legal and Statutory Process

Please confirm whether any Stopping Up Order, Traffic Regulation Order (TRO), or other statutory process was used to remove, restrict, or alter pedestrian access at this location.

If any such process was used, please provide copies of the public notices and associated documentation.

Road Safety Audits and Scheme Evaluation

Please provide the Stage 1, Stage 2, and Stage 3 Road Safety Audits for this scheme together with the Designer’s Responses.

Please also provide any Post-Opening Project Evaluation (POPE), monitoring reports, or similar postimplementation safety reviews produced since completion of the scheme.

1. Accident and Incident Data

Please provide any STATS19 accident data held by Transport Scotland or BEAR Scotland for this section of the A7 from January 2023 to the date of this request.

Please provide records of “Damage Only” incidents recorded by BEAR Scotland at this location since installation of the barrier, including barrier strikes or repair records.

Please also provide any records of carriageway debris, collision debris, or incident call-outs recorded at this location since January 2023, including entries from routine safety patrols, maintenance inspections, or defect reporting systems where vehicle fragments or collision debris were recorded.

Design Decisions and Risk Assessment

Please provide any Designer’s Risk Assessments, hazard logs, scheme design reports, option appraisal documents, or Departures from Standard relating to the decision to install the Vehicle Restraint System at this location.

Internal Correspondence

Please provide internal correspondence (including emails, meeting notes, or briefing documents) held by Transport Scotland or BEAR Scotland between January 2023 and December 2024 discussing:

the informal path or access track at this location
pedestrian access between the A7 and the River Tweed
the presence or potential provision of a bus stop at this location
engagement with Laggan Estates regarding the installation of the VRS

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. Pedestrian and Vulnerable User Assessments

(a) You requested the Walking, Cycling and Horse Riding Assessment and Review (WCHAR) undertaken for this scheme in accordance with DMRB standard GG 142.

(b) You stated if no WCHAR was undertaken, please provide the recorded rationale for exclusion.

As per the WCHR process an exemption to undertaking a full WCHR report was approved. Please see Annex A to this response for a copy of this exemption.

An exception under regulation 11(2) of the EIRs (personal information) applies to some the information requested because it is personal data of a third party and disclosing it would contravene the data protection principles in Article 5(1) of the General Data Protection Regulation and in section 34(1) of the Data Protection Act 2018. 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.

(c) You requested any Equality Impact Assessment (EqIA) or similar assessment considering impacts on pedestrians or other non-motorised users at this location, including consideration of access between the A7 and the River Tweed.

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. Transport Scotland does not have the information you have requested because an Equality Impact Assessment (EqIA) or similar assessment considering impacts on pedestrians or other non-motorised users at this location was not carried out as it was not considered applicable in relation to these works, as such, a copy is not available for release.

There is no footway affected within the trunk road boundary. Additionally, the adjacent landowner advised they don’t maintain the existing footpath. Further the path being discussed is not a part of the core path network and is not identified as a right of way for public use.

2. Consultation and Stakeholder Engagement

(a) You stated, BEAR Scotland indicated that properties were contacted during the design stage.

Please provide:

1. Copies of consultation letters issued

2. A description of the properties or stakeholders contacted (with personal data redacted where necessary)

3. Any stakeholder or consultation list used during the design or approval process Properties contacted to advise of the works

Please see Annex B to this response for a copy of the consultation letter and Annex B (1) for a list of the notified stakeholders and Annex D to this response for a copy of a media release.

(b) All correspondence with Scottish Borders Council Rangers and the Scottish Rights of Way and Access Society (ScotWays) regarding access, paths, or rights of way at this location.

Please see Annex B, B(2)(a) and B(2)(b).

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. Transport Scotland does not have the information you have requested because a telephone discussion was held with ScotWays who referred BEAR Scotland to the ScotWays website. As such, we do not hold records of any correspondence documents with ScotWays.

(c) You requested copies of any correspondence with Laggan Estates relating to the installation of the VRS or consent for the works.

Please see Annex C to this response.

3. Legal and Statutory Process

(a) You requested confirmation on whether any Stopping Up Order, Traffic Regulation Order (TRO), or other statutory process was used to remove, restrict, or alter pedestrian access at this location and if any such process was used, your requested copies of the public notices and associated documentation.

No Orders were required for this type of work as the path is not a core path, bridleway or right of way.

4. Road Safety Audits and Scheme Evaluation

(a) Please provide the Stage 1, Stage 2, and Stage 3 Road Safety Audits for this scheme together with the Designer’s Responses.

Please see Annex E to this response for a copy of the Stage 1/2 Road Safety Audit Report. The Stage 3 Road Safety Audit is programmed to be carried out in the near future.

(b) You asked for copies of any Post-Opening Project Evaluation (POPE), monitoring reports, or similar post-implementation safety reviews produced since completion of the scheme.

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. A Post-Opening Project Evaluation (POPE), monitoring reports or similar post-implementation safety reviews are elements that have not been used in this process. As such, we do not hold records of these documents.

Collisions and the effectiveness of the scheme in reducing casualties is monitored through the Annual Road Safety review that is undertaken by Transport Scotland’s Operating Company as required by the South East Network Management Contract.

5. Accident and Incident Data

(a) You requested any STATS19 accident data held by Transport Scotland or BEAR Scotland for this section of the A7 from January 2023 to the date of this request (5 March 2026).

There has been 1 personal injury collision recorded on the A7 at Boleside between the access into Glenmayne House and the former junction of the Boleside Road with the A7.

Collision data is included in Annex J 5a and 5b.Both reports are taken from the same source data.

(b) You requested records of “Damage Only” incidents recorded by BEAR Scotland at this location since installation of the barrier, including barrier strikes or repair records.

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. Transport Scotland does not have the information you have requested because the records held by Transport Scotland relate only to collisions involving injuries or fatalities that have been reported to, and are known by, Police Scotland.

As such, we do not hold records of collisions that resulted in damage only.

Please see Annex F to this response for the Defects report. This holds all logged entries from safety patrol maintenance inspections.

(c) You requested any records of carriageway debris, collision debris, or incident call-outs recorded at this location since 01 January 2023 – (5 March 2026), including entries from routine safety patrols, maintenance inspections, or defect reporting systems where vehicle fragments or collision debris were recorded.

Please see Annex G for the incidents log shows all debris and collisions recorded.

6. Design Decisions and Risk Assessment

(a) you requested copies of any Designer’s Risk Assessments, hazard logs, scheme design reports, option appraisal documents, or Departures from Standard relating to the decision to install the Vehicle Restraint System at this location.

As such, we do not hold records of these documents. Hazard information is considered through the designer’s risk assessment.

Please see Annex H to this response for copies of the Designer Risk Register and Annex I for a copy of the Determination of Departure from Standards.

7. Internal Correspondence

(a) you requested copies of internal correspondence (including emails, meeting notes, or briefing documents) held by Transport Scotland or BEAR Scotland between January 2023 and December 2024 discussing:

1. the informal path or access track at this location

2. pedestrian access between the A7 and the River Tweed

3. the presence or potential provision of a bus stop at this location

4. engagement with Laggan Estates regarding the installation of the VRS

While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance Transport Scotland does not have the information you have requested. Therefore, we are refusing your request under the exception at regulation 10(4)(a) of the EIRs.

Transport Scotland does not have the information you have requested because no internal correspondence is held regarding copies of internal correspondence (including emails, meeting notes, or briefing documents) is held by Transport Scotland or BEAR Scotland between January 2023 and December 2024 discussing:

1. the informal path or access track at this location

2. pedestrian access between the A7 and the River Tweed

3. the presence or potential provision of a bus stop at this location

4. engagement with Laggan Estates regarding the installation of the VRS

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 information about this subject, clearly, we cannot provide information which we do not hold.

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