Our ‘30 Projects for 30 Years’ series celebrates the infrastructure delivered by CECA members over the past three decades. This profile features the A9 Berriedale Braes Improvement Project, delivered by RJ McLeod Contractors Ltd for Transport Scotland.
Completed in August 2020, the approximately £9.6 million scheme tackled a longstanding bottleneck on a vital route serving northern Scotland. A tight hairpin bend and steep gradients had made this section particularly challenging for heavy goods vehicles, affecting safety and the reliability of journeys for communities, businesses and visitors.
Working with Arup, RJ McLeod delivered the improvements amid steep coastal terrain, difficult ground conditions and significant environmental constraints, while maintaining through traffic on the A9. Close engagement with local residents and careful protection of the surrounding environment were central to delivery.
The scheme created safer, more reliable journeys and won the Rural Resilience Award at the 2021 Scottish Civil Engineering Awards. It demonstrates the engineering expertise and collaboration that CECA members bring to improving essential infrastructure in demanding locations.