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Evaluation is essential to the work of Transport Scotland to assess whether policies and interventions are being delivered as intended, and to help identify ways to improve them.

Justice of the peace courts deal with less serious summary crimes such as speeding, careless driving and breach of the peace. Being a Justice of the Peace is a voluntary role that is filled by lay people from within the local community who receive training in criminal law and procedure. They are assisted by lawyers who can provide advice on the law and procedure.

These courts help improve the overall efficiency of the justice system as they reduce the number of cases that need to be considered at Summary Sheriff level (the next most senior court). Justice of the Peace cases are also less expensive to run than Summary Sheriff cases saving public money which can be spent elsewhere in the justice system. Additionally, by hearing less serious criminal cases in a Justice of the Peace Court this helps prevent backlogs in the Sheriff courts.

Our contractors have upgraded or replaced 227 street lights on the A90 trunk road over the last five years.

The Scottish Public Finance Manual sets out the appraisal framework for proportionately securing best value and value for money. The methodology on applying this appraisal framework, where there is a change sought to the transport system requiring Scottish Government funding, support or approval, is provided in the Scottish Transport Appraisal Guidance.

Our Operating Companies hold regular meetings with neighbouring Local Authorities to share knowledge and consult on matters that will affect the operation of each road network. For example, road works, winter maintenance, major events and instance of severe weather require a joined-up response or mutual aid. Our Operating Companies are required to consult a wide range of stakeholders to ensure the impacts of their planned works are properly managed and any negative impacts mitigated. Transport Scotland also maintains regular contact with Local Authority colleagues through a range of professional body engagements.

To inform funding decisions, all projects supported by Transport Scotland are required to follow our standard , including the . Identified options for Transport Scotland investment are assessed against national and relevant regional economic development strategies to ensure alignment. Options are also assessed against Transport Planning Objectives (TPOs) and the standard STAG criteria. The standard STAG criteria include Economy as well as Climate Change, Environment, Health, Safety and Wellbeing and Equality and Accessibility.

All major transport projects are appraised and evaluated in line with the Scottish Public Finance Manual and Scottish Transport Appraisal Guidance (STAG) which are consistent with HM Treasury Green Book guidance. The Green Book (Section 6.1) generally discourages the calculation of macroeconomic impacts (employment and GDP) and it is generally not possible to evaluate the macroeconomic impact of specific transport projects separately from general changes in the economy.

Over the last 5 full financial years there has been the following number of surface repairs on the A90 trunk road:

All transport expenditure supports economic activity and development. This ranges from the maintenance and enhancement of the road, rail, air and ferry networks and our bridges, the impact of our sustainable travel and low carbon schemes, the support for public transport users through concessionary fares, the funding of rail services and bus grants to allow easier access to employment and support to local authorities.

Funds are allocated in line with the 4 priorities within the National Transport Strategy of which Inclusive Economic Growth is a key component and the vast majority of expenditure is around maintaining and running the existing system that is crucial for economic development. However, all transport interventions have impacts across all the 4 priorities and interact with each other and some projects are funded over multiple years and as such, there is no rigorous way of determining which expenditure in any given period has a primary focus on economic development.

There have been no specific studies undertaken over the last five years to access the environmental impact of the A90’s maintenance and usage. As part of the network management contract obligations, the Operating Companies that manage the Trunk Road Network on behalf of Transport Scotland and Scottish Ministers are required to report annually on the progress of landscape maintenance across the relevant units.

All potential schemes for maintenance and improvement works on the Trunk Road Network, including the A90, are robustly assessed for environmental effects by suitably qualified and experienced environmental specialists. The assessments will involve desk studies and ecological field surveys, where appropriate, and will include an understanding of the environmental baseline, potential impacts from the works and the identification of mitigations and best practice measures which are intended to avoid, reduce and where possible remedy adverse impacts.

The assessment of environmental effects is embedded into the design, planning and execution of schemes and throughout the assessment process, key stakeholders such as environmental statutory and non-statutory bodies, local authorities and members of the public are consulted, as appropriate, to inform the decision making and ensure legislative requirements are met.