AWPR opens between Blackdog and Goval

The Aberdeen Western Peripheral route has taken another step towards completion today with the opening of a new section of the project.

The portion north of the city between Goval and Blackdog is over four miles long and is expected to deliver a range of benefits, such as improved safety and local access.

It’s also hoped this development will aid in journey time reliability.

The stretch of road will have a 70 mph speed limit, which will be reduced on approach to slip roads.

This follows the opening of the Blackdog junction in May. This has already improved access to Belhelvie, Potterton, Blackdog and Blackdog Industrial Estate.

It’s expected that the link to the Parkhill junction in Goval will help improve access to local areas north of Aberdeen, such as Dyce and Bridge of Don.

Aberdeen City Council Co-Leader Jenny Laing said:

“The opening of the 7km Parkhill to Blackdog section is a further significant step in the AWPR/B-T project. The completion of the AWPR/B-T later this year will bring enormous benefits to the city and region and as a whole and Aberdeen City Council is proud to invest £75million into what is one of the major infrastructure projects that will boost the North East’s economic potential still further.”

Leader of Aberdeenshire Council Cllr Jim Gifford commented:

"This is exactly the sort of news that the people of Aberdeenshire have been waiting for. This road building project is on such a large scale that opening sections as and when they are ready makes absolute sense. By working with our partners we have been able to deliver this significant investment, which will have transformational benefits. We look forward to the full opening later this year.”

A date has yet to be confirmed for the whole route to open – but there's going to be a Community Weekend in the Deeside area on the 8th and 9th of September.

Russell Borthwick from the local Chamber of Commerce said he had been hoping for clarity on the opening date, but he's welcoming the new campaign to get people "AWPR ready."

A website's been set up to give people more information about the new road.

Not everyone is thrilled about the new road. Gordon McGillivray from the Parkhill Garden Centre says his business has seen stock and profits hit by the construction work:

“We’ve always been for the AWPR from the very beginning. But we are being heavily impacted on by salt spray from the overbridge. The problem is the salt will come down onto the plants and disfigure them and even cause their death – making them unfit for sale.

“As we are just now, we’re in limbo and can’t move forward. Our only hope now is to relocate away from the AWPR.