Connect Roads wins £745m Aberdeen Bypass

Scotland’s transport minister Keith Brown has named the Connect Roads consortium as preferred bidder to build the Aberdeen bypass project.

The consortium consisting of Balfour Beatty, Carillion and Galliford Try will now start detailed design work on the will work on the £745m Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route and Balmedie/Tipperty project.

The consortium beat rival bids from the North East Roads Partnership and Granite City consortia.

Brown said: “The announcement today ensures we remain well on course, with the contract expected be awarded and construction starting in earnest before the year is out.”

The AWPR will consist of four sections; from Stonehaven to Cleanhill, Charleston to North Kingswells, North Kingswells to Blackdog, and Balmedie to Tipperty.

Brown added: “Over the next three decades, our investment in the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route project is expected to bring in an additional £6bn to the local economy and create around 14,000 new jobs.

“During construction we would expect to see benefits similar in scale to the recently completed M74 scheme, which directly generated 900 construction jobs. It will also provide on-the-job training for apprentices and local employment opportunities.

He said:  “AWPR advance works are well underway with small and medium sized businesses (SMEs) from the north-east already benefiting – a contract worth nearly half a million pounds for the construction of a local connecting road here at Findon Junction is just one case in point.”