Highway Management (Scotland) Ltd, a consortium led by Bilfinger Berger Project Investments and comprising Northstone (NI) (formerly Farrans) and GRAHAM, has reached financial close on Transport Scotland’s M80 Stepps to Haggs project. Despite the global financial crisis, documents were successfully signed on 16th January, 2009. The DBFO contract involves construction of 18km of dual two/three lane motorway with associated slip roads and infrastructure from Stepps in North Lanarkshire to Haggs in Falkirk.
The M80 Stepps to Haggs is worth £320m, making it the largest Scottish non-education project to date. It is also the first UK road deal to close under the Competitive Dialogue procedure which has provided Transport Scotland with greater certainty regarding costs and commercial and legal position.
Highway Management (Scotland) has previously been successful on the M1 Westlink project in Belfast, which was a contributory factor to their success on the M80. The team were further strengthened by the inclusion of BEAR with their extensive experience in maintaining roads in Scotland.
Martin Pugh, Managing Director at Bilfinger commented:
“Tremendous effort has been demonstrated by all those involved, to achieve financial close in challenging times is something we can all be proud of. I would like to thank the team for their tenacity and hard work. Highway Management (Scotland) is providing a high quality solution for Transport Scotland, which incorporates innovation in design and delivery solutions, including phasing of the works to allow each section of the motorway to open as early as possible. We are very much looking forward to working further with Transport Scotland in the coming years.”
Transport Minister for Scotland, Stewart Stevenson said:
“The Scottish Government is absolutely clear that an efficient transport system is essential for enhancing productivity and delivering faster, more sustainable growth. This project is another example of how our continuing investment is helping the hard pressed construction sector, creating hundreds of construction jobs. It will also complete the missing gap between Stirling and Glasgow bringing real benefits to the surrounding communities and across the central belt as a whole.”
The 18km motorway project includes:
- 8km new dual two-lane carriageway and hard shoulders between Stepps and Mollinsburn.
- 2.7km on the existing A80 road upgraded to dual three-lane motorway between Mollinsburn and Auchenkilns.
- 7.3 km on the existing A80 upgraded to dual two-lane motorway between Auchenkilns to Haggs with hard shoulders and climbing lanes.
The scheme will provide a significant reduction in congestion for road users when it opens in terms of improved journey times and reliability. In the opening year, the decrease in travel time will amount to approximately 40% between Stepps and Haggs during peak periods which equates to savings of up to 15 minutes. Beyond this, the scheme will continue to offer greater operational benefits than if it is not constructed. For example, risk of accidents will be reduced, creation of jobs and accessibility to freight deliveries will be improved.
Early preparatory works have already started along the route and construction will begin immediately for the motorway to be fully opened in 2011.