Transport Scotland plans to upgrade the entire trunk road from Perth to Inverness. Design engineers, Jacobs, has finalised the route for the section between Killiecrankie and Glen Garry. The plan is now public and anyone who wishes to object must do so, in writing, to Transport Scotland before 23 January 2018.
KilliecrAnkie1689 is in favour of upgrading the A9 as part of the effort to improve road safety. However, it opposes the way that the road is to be widened for the first mile or so in Killiecrankie. The contentious area lies between the tie-in to the existing dual carriageway at the north end of the Pass of Killiecrankie and the Glen Girnaig Underpass, close to the village of Aldclune.
See where the road has been widened in red on the map above.
The project to upgrade the complete road from Perth to Inverness amounts to 80 miles (129km). The particular section that starts at Killiecrankie and finishes at Glen Garry covers about 13.4 miles (21.6km). The only area that KilliecrAnkie1689 challenges is the first mile or so (1.7km) of that section.
This first mile is the gateway to the Cairngorms National Park and runs through a National Scenic Area. It impinges on parcels of land that are listed in the Ancient Woodland Inventory and a burn that is within a Special Area of Conservation. But most significant of all, the road crosses the historic site of the Battle of Killiecrankie which took place on 27 July, 1689 and marked the start of the Jacobite uprisings.
Consequently Killiecrankie is recognised not just for its outstanding natural beauty but for its importance in Scottish history and heritage. More people died at the Battle of Killiecrankie than at the Battle of Culloden which brought the Jacobite rebellions to a decisive end.
KilliecrAnkie1689 believes that the route which Transport Scotland favours for widening the crucial mile in Killiecrankie will cause unprecedented degradation of the battlesite. Since the original road was built in the 1970s, many layers of official protection have been introduced. This regulatory framework is meant to protect, conserve and enhance the battlefield for the benefit of future generations.
It obliges Transport Scotland and team to explore every avenue to avoid negative impacts on the historic battlefield. KilliecrAnkie1689 believes that they have signally failed to do so.
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