Current status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 27 November 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what progress has been made on safety improvements at the A9 Dunkeld junction.
Road safety is of paramount importance to the Scottish Government. Transport Scotland assesses the safety performance of the trunk road network on an annual basis. The trunk road safety annual assessment process is a robust, evidence-based approach which ensures that the funding available can be prioritised to those locations that offer the possibility of delivering the greatest casualty accident savings across the country to support the effective delivery of the Scottish Government’s 2030 casualty reduction targets.
Through this process, Transport Scotland has undertaken, and continues to undertake where identified, road safety schemes related to the A9/A923/A822 Dunkeld junction. In November 2021, works were carried out to introduce solar road studs, refresh road markings, and upgrade local signage. In 2023, solar road studs and enhanced road markings were introduced on the section of the A9 between Bankfoot and Dalguise as part of the £5M A9 short-term measures announced by the then Transport Minister in December 2022.
Following engagement with the local community, Transport Scotland is currently reviewing signage associated with the A9/A923 Dunkeld junction and adjacent junctions. Any improvement works identified will be implemented during the 2026/27 financial year.
In 2024, following requests from the local community, a study was undertaken to assess the potential for a roundabout at the Dunkeld junction. A wide range of options were evaluated in terms of safety, operational performance, construction impacts on existing traffic, land requirements, environmental considerations, geotechnics, public utilities, construction programme, road geometry, public acceptability, and cost. The assessment concluded that roundabout options were costly, would likely be replaced by the A9 dualling in a few years, were disruptive to construct, and ultimately did not accommodate the traffic volumes at the junction.
As a result, and following discussions with the local community, Transport Scotland agreed to investigate traffic signalisation as an alternative. Our Operating Company BEAR Scotland has been instructed to examine the feasibility of introducing traffic signals and reducing the speed limit. This investigative work is scheduled for completion by the end of the 2025/26 financial year.
The A9/A923/A82 Dunkeld junction was identified in Transport Scotland’s 2026/27 Annual Road Safety Review report as a site requiring further investigation, which will take place during the 2026/27 financial year.