New roadworks on the A90 between St Ann’s and Keithock, one of Scotland’s most-repaired stretches of road, will be in place for drivers on the Brechin bypass until late December.

Contractors have begun a scheme of “more extensive” works of the controversial section of the Dundee to Aberdeen dual carriageway, says The Courier.

The Angus town’s bypass opened more than 30 years ago, but its concrete surface has been a constant source of problems, causing traffic headaches for regular users of the main north-east trunk road.

The northbound carriageway, in particular, is a patchwork of repairs, with its constant bumps from surface patching leading to the stretch being coined the ‘Guitar Hero’ road in reference to the frets on musical video game. The latest repairs will see slip lane closures and contraflows on the bypass between today and December 19.

A freedom of information request on Brechin bypass repair costs has revealed a spend of more than £1 million in the past couple of years alone.

The figure includes:

• April 2023 to February 2024 (inspection and concrete repairs): £310,877
• February to March 2024 (southbound concrete repairs): £195,622
• February to April 2025 (slip road resurfacing): £367,228
• June to July 2025 (visual surveys including drainage and barrier work): £135,000

However, details of exactly how much has been spent on the near four-mile section are vague. North-east Scottish Conservative MSP, Liam Kerr, has campaigned over a number of years to have the patched road fully resurfaced.In 2021, transport chiefs admitted there was no long-term strategy to deal with the issues on the bypass. In January, more repairs were made after a spate of tyre damage to northbound vehicles.

Mr Kerr raised the issue in Holyrood with transport secretary Fiona Hyslop and asked how much had been spent repairing the A90 at Brechin.

Ms Hyslop told the MSP:

“The cost of repair work on the A90 between St Ann’s and Keithock junctions, near Brechin, is not available. This is because expenditure is not recorded for specific sections of the trunk road. Instead, costs are collated and reported as a total spend for the A90 as a whole.”

In the past decade, those have totalled more than £166m along the near 170 miles from Edinburgh to Fraserburgh.

“The operating company for the A90, Amey, undertake two driven safety inspections weekly and an annual walked survey,” Ms Hyslop added.

“Any defects identified are repaired in accordance with contractual requirements.”

Mr Kerr concluded:

“The Scottish Government keeps insisting vast sums are at the ready to repair the constant potholes and terrible state of the road. That doesn’t tie up with these official figures, which show how little is actually being invested in it.

“It shows a piecemeal approach to resurfacing rather than a decent outlay to fix the road, once and for all.”

(Pic: Mapillary)