- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 11 February 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what the annual cost is of maintaining emergency telephones on (a) the A90 in the (i) section north of Dundee and (ii) other sections and (b) other trunk roads.
Answer
Transport Scotland’s Traffic Scotland Infrastructure Contractor, Amey Ltd, is paid a monthly Unitary Charge for the inspection, maintenance and repair of ITS (Intelligent Transport System) roadside infrastructure and individual costs specific to emergency telephones cannot be disaggregated.
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 11 February 2025
To ask the Scottish Government how many emergency telephones are installed on the A90, broken down by the (a) section north of Dundee and (b) other sections.
Answer
There are seven emergency telephones installed on the A90 north of Dundee and two on other sections of the A90.
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 11 February 2025
To ask the Scottish Government how often emergency telephones are inspected and tested on (a) the A90 in the (i) section north of Dundee and (ii) other sections and (b) other trunk roads.
Answer
All emergency telephones on the Scottish Trunk Road Network, including on the A90, are inspected and tested every three months.
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 11 February 2025
To ask the Scottish Government how often emergency telephones on the A90, including the section north of Dundee, have been used in the past five years.
Answer
In the past five years 51 calls have been received on the emergency telephones on the A90 north of Dundee.
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 11 February 2025
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has carried out an analysis of the cost-effectiveness of maintaining emergency telephones on the A90, including the section north of Dundee, compared with alternative measures.
Answer
The emergency telephones on the A90 are maintained under a term contract managed by Transport Scotland whereby a monthly unitary payment is made, for the maintenance and repair of, Scotland wide, ITS (Intelligent Transport System) roadside assets such as the A90 emergency telephones.
In the summer of 2024, on behalf of Transport Scotland, the Traffic Scotland Service Operator (Mobiie) conducted an Operational Requirement review of Emergency Roadside Telephones (ERT’s) resulting in the recommendation that the ERT’s remain in operation as a service to the public.
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 11 February 2025
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-33161 by Fiona Hyslop on 22 January 2025, how much has been spent on maintaining the 2,297 street lights on the A90 in each of the last five years, broken down by local authority area.
Answer
Please see the following table which provides the costs of maintaining the 2297 streetlights on the A90.
Activity | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | 2023-24 | 2024-25 |
Maintenance | £2,713.53 | £8,884.67 | £850.77 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
Transport Scotland does not hold the above information by local authority area, and these figures are for the full length of the A90.
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 11 February 2025
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-33168 by Fiona Hyslop on 22 January 2025, whether Transport Scotland or its operating companies have identified any of the A90 overbridges and overpasses as requiring significant structural upgrades or replacement.
Answer
Refurbishment and upgrades to the A90 Kingsway, Dundee Strathmartine and Old Glamis footbridges are planned for the 2025-26 financial year.
These works are currently at the tendering stage so a detailed construction programme is unavailable. Preparatory works have commenced on site with temporary pedestrian crossings being installed prior to the footbridges being removed from site for refurbishment/upgrade.
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 11 February 2025
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-33168 by Fiona Hyslop on 22 January 2025, how it ensures that regular inspections of A90 overbridges and overpasses are carried out in compliance with relevant safety standards and best practices.
Answer
Transport Scotland officials oversee the work of our contractors. They collaborate across disciplines and contractual boundaries to ensure work is completed in the areas of most need and that it represents best value.
Officials are supported by the Performance Audit Group (PAG). PAG is employed by the Scottish Ministers to provide independent auditing of the Operating Companies’ performance to ensure that the requirements of the contract are met, that work is carried out to the required technical specification, and that financial valuations are correct.
Officials work in partnership with PAG to manage contract risks in accordance with Scottish Government policy. The most significant risks are transferred to Roads Directorate’s risk register for completeness.
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 11 February 2025
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-33168 by Fiona Hyslop on 22 January 2025, whether there have been any reported safety concerns or incidents involving overbridges and overpasses along the A90 in the last five years, and what actions were taken to address these concerns.
Answer
Safety concerns are recorded as defects and addressed in accordance with contractual requirements and timescales.
Safety defects and remedial actions on the A90 over the last five years are detailed below:
- A90 840 Portlethan Overbridge – Damaged parapet mesh. Parapet mesh was replaced.
- A90 630 Stracathro Overbridge - Damage to Vehicle Restraint System (VRS) post. VRS post replaced.
- A90 310 Kings Cross West Overbridge – Plugged drain. Drain cleared.
- Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 January 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 11 February 2025
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-33168 by Fiona Hyslop on 22 January 2025, whether Transport Scotland has conducted any assessments on the potential impact of severe weather events, such as those experienced during Storm Babet, on the structural integrity of the A90 overbridges and overpasses.
Answer
Transport Scotland has developed an Approach to Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience (ACCAR), which provides a strategic overview of our approach primarily on infrastructure and services directly under Transport Scotland control. A key deliverable of this work is the development of a Trunk Road Adaptation Plan, based on a climate vulnerability and risk assessment using the latest UK climate projections. The Trunk Road Adaptation Plan will be published in 2025. It includes key interventions and recommendations for further adapting the Trunk Road Network. There will be a focus on risks associated with increased surface water flooding, river flooding, river scour and landslides.
The Trunk Road Adaptation Plan will complement the work of our roads Vulnerable Locations Operational Group (VLOG), which was established in 2021 in line with the commitments set out in the National Transport Strategy Delivery Plan 2020 – 2022 with an initial focus on delivering short-term cost-effective actions, whilst developing a move to a long-term proactive approach, including a dedicated budget for climate change adaptation.
The VLOG has targeted resource on early flood level warning systems around A90 river crossings and undertaken specific bridge scour assessments and inspections to national standards to enable resources to be focused on potential future risk areas