Ross calls for firm timetable for Inverness airport link
Moray MP Douglas Ross has written again to the Scottish Government to ask for a firm timetable for construction of the promised train station at Inverness airport. His calls follow a response from the Scottish Government to the local MP where they said they were keen to progress the station but didn’t provide any details as to how long the region will have to wait for this investment.
Douglas said: “I initially wrote to Network Rail after a constituent asked why work hadn’t even started on the new station when original plans suggested it was to have been completed by 2019.
“I received a disappointing response which stated that the contract was now in the hands of Transport Scotland and would be progressed during their next control period – sometime between 2019 and 2024 - so I wrote to the Scottish Government asking for more clarity.
“The Transport Minister has replied to say that it has been delayed due to a funding shortfall but has not been able to give any more information other than to say that the Scottish Government is committed to progressing the station at Dalcross. Local people and businesses have been left completely in the dark about the timeframe for this crucial infrastructure investment and that is not good enough.
“The public deserve proper transport links and so I have written back to the SNP Scottish Government seeking a firm timetable for the works. Without this information the public will be unable to monitor any further slippage in the project. The SNP need to be open and honest about the length of time it will take to build the station given the project is already so far behind schedule.
“This station is badly needed. I am being contacted on a regular basis by constituents who are struggling to get to and from Inverness airport by public transport. The Scottish Government need to give the public a firm timetable for action and we need to see the station built as soon as possible. This situation cannot be allowed to drag on.”