EIR/202600510755 · FOI/EIR · partially withheld
Transport Scotland - Woodside Viaduct works information: EIR release
Information requested
The following information on the Woodside Viaduct works:
1. Who did the government go to to do the bridge examinations?
2. Where can people view the previous bridge inspections on said area?
3. How long are the bridge inspections kept for?
4. Why is the government now given a consultation to the public to see if they want it removed, who’s idea was this?
5. Are the government going to go publicly on tv and say sorry about the amount of public money they have over spent on the scheme ie ferry’s and now the roads and now they put the council tax up?
Response
As the information you have requested is 'environmental information' for the purposes of the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (EIRs), we are required to deal with your request under those Regulations. We are applying the exemption at section 39(2) of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA), so that we do not also have to deal with your request under FOISA.
This exemption is subject to the 'public interest test'. Therefore, taking account of all the circumstances of this case, we have considered if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exemption. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding the exemption, because there is no public interest in dealing with the same request under two different regimes. This is essentially a technical point and has no material effect on the outcome of your request.
To aid my response I have answered your questions in the order that they received.
Q1. Who did the government go to to do the bridge examinations? A1. Typically bridge inspections are carried out by the incumbent Operating Company for that unit. In the case of Woodside Viaducts, this has been Amey for the South West unit since 2020. The viaducts were also inspected by WSP UK Ltd, as part of a structural assessment in 2021.
Q2. Where can people view the previous bridge inspections on said area? A2. The inspections are stored within Transport Scotland’s Asset Management Performance System (AMPS), which is accessible by employees of Transport Scotland, our Operating Companies and other Suppliers.
Q3. How long are the bridge inspections kept for? A3. As these are important documents related to the condition of the structure, there is no scheduled date for their disposal and they will be kept indefinitely.
Q4. Why is the government now given a consultation to the public to see if they want it removed, who’s idea was this? A4. Transport Scotland is responsible for taking forward the M8 Woodside Viaducts Permanent Solution project. Work is in progress to develop the Strategic Outline Case for the project, including consideration of a range of alternative approaches that are the subject of an ongoing public consultation in line with Scottish Transport Appraisal Guidance . Feedback from that consultation will be considered alongside other factors to determine the preferred approach for the project, which will balance issues such as engineering, environmental, economic, health and safety and social value considerations. Transport Scotland will discuss the emerging findings from this assessment with the Scottish Government when this work is sufficiently advanced.
Q5. Are the government going to go publicly on tv and say sorry about the amount of public money they have over spent on the scheme ie ferry’s and now the roads and now they put the council tax up? A5. In terms of cost control for the Woodside Viaduct Temporary Propping project, a cost range was announced for the project in May 2024 of £126 - £152 million. A cost range has been used as the cost is dependent on a number of factors. The cost estimate range includes varying allowances for risk, contingency and inflation and is standard industry practice for large infrastructure projects. Transport Scotland has the Performance Audit Group (PAG) who ensure value for money through auditing, monitoring and reporting on the financial, technical and performance aspects of these works. In addition, we have secured the services of Turner and Townsend to provide expert project controls support.
The setting of council tax rates are a matter for each local authority.
About FOI
The Scottish Government is committed to publishing all information released in response to Freedom of Information requests. View all FOI responses at https://www.gov.scot/foi-responses.
Contact Please quote the FOI reference Central Correspondence Unit Email: contactus@gov.scot Phone: 0300 244 4000 The Scottish Government St Andrew's House Regent Road Edinburgh EH1 3DG
Detected exemption language
We are applying the exemption at section 39(2) of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA), so that we do not also have to deal with your request under FOISA. This exemption is subject to the 'public interest test'. Therefore, taking account of all the circumstances of this case, we have considered if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exemption. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding the exemption, because there is no public interest in dealing with the same request under two different regimes.
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