A new £4.2 million road linking the region’s largest airport and Inverness Airport Business Park with the A96 will be officially opened today by Scottish Transport Minister Tavish Scott.
Inverness Airport Way will significantly improve surface access to the airport and open up the development potential of the 250 hectare airport business park site.
Mr Scott will officially open the road at 11.45am with help from pupils from nearby Ardersier Primary School.
Inverness Airport Way will improve the integration of transport within the Highlands by better linking Inverness Airport to the trunk road network and enhancing the connections between air services and public transport.
Construction of the road started in May 2005. The scheme was designed by Halcrow and the contractor for the project was Mowlem. The road will open to traffic late on Friday afternoon.
The road and associated access infrastructure has been funded by the European Regional Development Fund through the Highlands and Islands Special Transitional Programme 2000-2006 (£1.042 million), Highlands and Islands Airports Limited (£1.4 million), Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch & Strathspey Enterprise (£0.550 million) and The Highland Council (£1.175 million).
Inverness is the region’s largest airport and is on target to handle a record 660,000 passengers in the year ending 31 March 2006 which will represent passenger growth of 90% since 1999. The airport handles more than 330 scheduled flights per week to London, Belfast, Bristol, Manchester, Birmingham, Edinburgh, Glasgow, the Western Isles, Orkney and Shetland. New routes to Dublin and Leeds Bradford are due to start in April.
A report published in summer 2005 showed that the airport and the connectivity it provides produces an annual economic output of £120 million and supports almost 3,000 full-time equivalent jobs across the region.
Inverness Airport Business Park Limited, a joint venture company comprising HIAL, INBSE and Moray Estates Development Company and supported by The Highland Council, is developing Inverness Airport Business Park on a 250 hectare site at the airport. The project has a key role to play in attracting inward investment to the area and enabling business expansion on the main A96 road corridor between the City of Inverness and Nairn. It is estimated that the first phase of development will include the creation of around 16,500m2 of business accommodation, including an airport hotel. Around 260,000m2 of business, industrial and freight distribution accommodation could be developed on the site over 30 years, supporting as many as 5,000 full-time jobs.
John Doune, chairman of IABP Ltd said: “The development of Inverness Airport Way has been a successful partnership project which will bring significant benefits to the area and airport users. It also opens up access to the business park site which will play a major role in attracting investment to this region and providing thousands of new jobs over the next 30 years.”
Inglis Lyon, managing director of HIAL said: “Inverness Airport is a major economic driver for the Highlands and its development will play a crucial role in the future prosperity of this area. Improving access to the airport is very important. The opening of the new road is one step in this process while we also aim to work with partners to improve public transport and integration as the airport continues to expand in terms of routes and passenger numbers.”
Ruaraidh MacNeil, operations manager at INBSE, said: “This is a significant step towards us developing this strategic site and maximising its full economic potential for Inverness and the wider region. The airport business park development will be particularly attractive to potential inward investors looking to locate in this area who will benefit from easy access to the ever expanding range of air services available at Inverness.”
Councillor Charlie King, chair of The Highland Council's Transport, Environmental and Community Services Committee and chairman of the Highlands and Islands Regional Transport Partnership said: “I am delighted that the airport now has an access road befitting its status as the principal airport in the Highlands. Accessibility and transport integration are key priorities for us and this project is an example where a major improvement has been achieved through a partnership approach to development.”
Stuart Innes, project director from civil engineering consultants Halcrow said: “Halcrow has been immersed in this project from very early on and we are delighted to finally see the access road open. The design of this stretch or road threw up some considerable challenges and the result, after three years of work, is a tremendous boost for Inverness and the Highland economy.
“The road opens up a huge new area for development and I’m pleased that the development partners have been visionary enough to recognise the potential growth opportunities in this airport zone.”
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