An Enquiry into the dualling of the A9 commenced at Pitlochry on January 13th 2020. The 1745 Association has reiterated its concerns about the threat it poses to the Killiecrankie battlefield.

“We are respectfully asking the Reporter to consider all feasible options for the A9, not just those put forward by Transport for Scotland, in order to avoid irreparable and irreversible damage to one of Scotland’s most important battlefield sites,” said Association Chairman Michael Nevin. “As a professional economist, I seriously question whether a rigorous cost-benefit analysis would support the dualling of the A9 at Killiecrankie at all. Do we really want to encourage more cars, travelling ever-increasing speeds, on our our arterial roads? Surely the priority of an environmentally responsible transport policy should be to encourage greater use of rail and bus services, combined with regulating road traffic to travel at steady and sustainable speeds and so minimise the damaging effect that vehicle emissions are having on global warming.”

Mr Nevin suggests that the optimal strategy for the A9 would involve maintaining the existing single carriageway at the Pass of Killiecrankie, combined with selective dualling on stretches before and after enabling motorists to overtake slower moving vehicles safely.

“At Killiecrankie, a far more cost-effective option would involve maintaining the existing single carriageway, adding a lay-by together and enhancing battlefield interpretation to encourage passing travellers by bus, coach and car to pause and reflect on an important moment in Scottish history,” said Mr Nevin.

The 1745 Association formally wrote to the Director of Major Transport Infrastructure Projects (MTRIPS) of Transport Scotland on January 20th 2018 setting out its objections to their proposals. “We reiterate our objections today as the Enquiry commences. TfL’s cosmetic changes to their original proposals do nothing to allay our concerns,” stated Mr Nevin. “We stand shoulder to shoulder with the Scottish Battlefields Trust, the local community group Soldiers of Killiecrankie, our friends in The Fifteen (the Northumbrian Jacobite Society) and many others who share our fundamental concerns about these proposals. I am confident that the Reporter will give full and detailed consideration to all options, and we wish him well in his important Enquiry.”