The preferred route for a new dual carriageway A96 – including a bypass for Nairn – have been revealed to the public this morning.
The route includes a new road between the roundabout at Inverness Retail Park and Gollanfield to the west of Nairn.
There will be delight that the proposed route avoids popular leisure spot, Delnies Wood.
Under Transport Scotland’s plans the Inverness-Aberdeen road would then follow a new 9.3 mile bypass of Nairn, cutting from Gollanfield to Auldearn on the east of the town.
The plans, which have been revealed in Nairn this morning, show the first stage of plans to dual the A96 by 2030.
Transport Scotland have said the Inverness-Gollanfield stretch, which is largely off the route of the existing A96, was chosen because it minimises impact on land and property close to the trunk road.
The current road would be kept to provide access to houses and farms, while new junctions would be built on the dual carriageway at Smithton, Newton, Mid Coul and Brackley.
The Nairn Bypass stretch would include a 656 feet crossing of the River Nairn at Broadley and junctions at the west and east end of the town.
It would also avoid Delnies Wood, which local residents had feared could be at risk from the new road.
The full plans will be on show at Nairn Community and Arts Centre between 12pm and 7pm today (Friday, October 3).
They will also be shown at the Dunbar Memorial Hall in Auldearn on Monday and at Raigmore Community Centre in Inverness on Tuesday next week.
Transport Minister Keith Brown said: “We have ambitious plans to dual the A96 between Inverness and Aberdeen by 2030, delivering around 142km of upgraded road.
“As part of that programme, we have been taking forward route option assessment work for dualling the 30km section between Inverness and Nairn including a Nairn Bypass.
“Following detailed assessment work and feedback from last year’s public exhibitions, we are now able to let the public see the preferred option for this scheme.
“We are keen to let locals and road users have their say and I would encourage anyone interested in our plans to come to the exhibitions and offer any comments.
“We are committed to delivering the scheme as quickly as possible and are currently progressing the procurement of a design consultant to develop the plans further.
“We expect to appoint a consultant early next year with a view to publishing draft orders for this £30 million contract scheme in 2016.”
