Opponents of a major scheme to link two of the north’s busiest trunk roads have demanded a rethink on the multimillion-pound project.
Some of them have even questioned the need to connect the A9 Inverness-Perth and the A96 Inverness-Aberdeen routes on the outskirts of the Highland capital.
Transport Scotland unveiled new plans for the so-called “east link” earlier this year.
The options all involve a single carriageway distributor road and range in cost from £50million-£90million.
The route has been more than a decade in the making, but Transport Scotland will not select its preference from the three on the table until next year.
Highland councillors will be asked for their views on which option is best during a meeting of the City of Inverness area committee on Tuesday.
Local authority officials have recommended that two options are examined in further detail by the roads agency.
But feedback from neighbouring communities shows that many are unhappy with the proposed routes, while others have suggested that it is not needed at all.
Consultation events were held in the city in May, and 300 people attended.
Disquiet about the lack of a direct entrance from the A9 road to the new Inverness Campus has also resurfaced.
Catriona Johnson, chairwoman of Westhill Community Council, said the B9006 Culloden Road was currently a major concern, adding that they did not believe the options put forward would relieve congestion in the area.
She said: “Traffic queues back to Simpsons Garden Centre in peak periods.
“The single carriageway at the A9 flyover is a pinch point and we are worried about the impact of the campus.
“As more buildings are constructed there will be more difficulty going on the road. I think the situation will be worse rather than better.
“We had hoped there would be another entrance into the campus.”
She added: “As far as the link road is concerned, we have never seen a reason for it and we are not sure where the funding will come from.”
And David McGrath, chairman of Smithton and Culloden Community Council, said his group also wanted to see a slip road from the A9 into the Inverness Campus.
He added: “There is no thought as to what would be most suitable for the people in the area or for the business there already.
“This is not what the people want.”
Anne Thomas, secretary of the Highlands and islands branch of the Scottish Green Party, said her group was not convinced about the need for the road, particularly at a time when community leaders had ambitions for a “zero-carbon” Inverness.
She said: “They are going to put this road in at huge expense. They would do much better to put a cycle track there instead.”
A fourth option – a dual carriageway link – was dropped earlier this year after negative feedback.
All proposed routes include upgrading the Longman Roundabout to an interchange similar to the one at Raigmore at a cost of up to £50million to help improve traffic flow.
A Transport Scotland spokesman said: “We will consider the feedback from the public exhibitions and complete the appraisal study by the end of the year.
“Following this we will let people know which option will be taken forward to stage two assessment, which will result in the selection of a preferred route alignment.”
