The Highland Council has announced a new £2.1 billion twenty-year investment plan, which will add significant capital on top of existing and additional new commitments of £50 million for roads and transport infrastructure agreed as part of the 2024 budget setting process.
£63.4m will be spent on roads and infrastructure improvements over the next 3 years. Following this, increases in capital through the Highland Investment Plan should see a further £287m investment to sustain roads and transport infrastructure over 20 years, pending agreement by Council as part of budget setting from 2027 onwards.
Additional to this will be funding to strengthen existing capital commitments to a range of on-going infrastructure needs over the next twenty years, including Roads, Bridges, Street Lighting, Fleet, Plant, Equipment, and other infrastructure including Flood Prevention, Piers, and Harbours.
Leader of the Council Raymond Bremner said: "The planned investment will help to address the on-going challenges we face in maintaining over 4000 miles of Highland roads and sustaining rural communities.
"A long-term investment programme for roads and transportation will ensure a sustainable approach to investment, contractor procurement, and opportunities to attract match funding from developer contributions or other external funding sources. There will also be significant local contracting and business opportunities and wider community economic benefit associated with the delivery of the Investment Plan."
The Roads Operational Areas have already taken their 2023/24 programmes to Area Committee. The programmes were presented to committees before the capital budget allocations were known, so they were based on the 2023/24 base capital figures as an estimate. Areas have presented a list of schemes for their expected budget allocation, with additional ones shown which have not yet been programmed. These are intended to be utilised when the additional funding becomes available or a scheme has to be delayed for operational reasons.
An £8.655m strategic allocation from the 2024-25 budget, will be targeted at a further list of road surface treatment schemes, utilising Engineering judgement and local knowledge to determine which projects were to be included. The project list has been compiled in conjunction with each Road Operations Manager and technical staff, to identify those which they could undertake in 2024/25. A diverse approach was taken, looking at urban and rural localities as well as all classes of roads, including where representations from Members or the public had been received.
Time and date
CONSTRUCTION DIRECTORY
Latest Construction News
22/11/2024
SP Energy Networks has announced a major investment in Britain's electricity grid, selecting 19 preferred partners to deliver a £5.4bn supply chain programme. This significant initiative aims to meet increasing energy demand and facilitate future growth. The selected companies, many of which are ...
22/11/2024
Edinburgh City Council has launched a 12-week public consultation on a new strategy to revitalise Princes Street and the wider Waverley Valley. The vision aims to create a more vibrant and welcoming city centre, attracting investment, supporting businesses, and enhancing the visitor ...
22/11/2024
Ener-G Services Limited, a leading UK electrical engineering company specialising in renewables, marine, and offshore sectors, has expanded its operations in Westhill, Aberdeenshire. The company has leased Unit 6E at Kingshill Commercial Park, a 2,500 sq ft space, on a 5-year lease. This new ...
22/11/2024
A consortium of leading scientists, industry experts, and academic institutions has joined forces to accelerate Scotland's offshore wind sector. The £2.5 million project, led by the University of Edinburgh in collaboration with the University of Dundee and the Forth and Tay Offshore cluster (FTO), ...
22/11/2024
The Port of Aberdeen and Turner & Townsend were highly commended in the 'Engineering, Construction & Infrastructure Project of the Year' category at the APM Project Management Awards 2024. The award recognises excellence in project management and the positive impact on end-users. The £420 million ...
22/11/2024
South Lanarkshire Council's £10 million fire safety improvement programme has reached a significant milestone, with CCG (Scotland) completing installations in over 1,700 high-rise residences across East Kilbride and Cambuslang. The Glasgow-based construction firm has been working closely with the ...
22/11/2024
SSEN Transmission, a key player in the UK's energy transition, is set to further expand its workforce and move into a new, sustainable office space in Glasgow. The company's commitment to net zero and the increasing demand for green energy workers has led to significant growth, with the number of ...
22/11/2024
Scottish Water is investing in the upgrade of its Loch Eck clean water plant in Dunoon. The project involves replacing outdated dry well pumps with new, more reliable pumps capable of operating in both wet and dry conditions. WGM Engineering, an RSK Group company, has been tasked with carrying out ...
22/11/2024
Scottish Land & Estates has expressed serious concerns over the Scottish Government's Land Reform Bill, particularly the provisions that would allow ministers to force landowners to sell large estates in lots. Sarah-Jane Laing, the organisation's chief executive, stated that while the land-based ...
22/11/2024
Clark Contracts employees have once again shown their commitment to community engagement by volunteering at Silverburn Park in Leven. On Thursday, 21st November, 16 members of the team spent their day planting over 400 trees and carrying out other landscaping tasks. This latest volunteering effort ...