B986

Route

Denburn Road in Aberdeen

The B986 started in Aberdeen City Centre and headed north then west, paralleling the A96.

Starting on the B983 Rosemount Viaduct it followed Skene Street to a roundabout where it turned left and followed Skene Square to reach the A944. Crossing directly into Berryden Road it then turned into Belmont Road to meet the A96 at traffic lights. After a short multiplex northwards, the two routes diverged again on the same side they met, with the B986 continuing north then west along Clifton Road to terminate at a LILO on the A92.

The dual carriageway of Denburn Road running from the Skene Square roundabout under the Trinity Centre to the A93 gyratory on Wapping Street is also marked as the B986 on some maps. As of 2020 however, Denburn Road was reclassified as the B983.

History

The route of the B986 had changed quite a bit since it was first classified in 1922. Indeed, the only original section seems to be Berryden Road and Belmont Road. It is difficult to know when the changes took place, as few maps show numbers for the smaller B roads in city centres, but the original 1922 route is as follows:

Starting on the A92 (now A9013) Union Street, the B986 headed north along Rose Street, now the B985. It continued along Esslemont Avenue and Watson Street to Westburn Road, now the A944, where it headed east to Berryden Road, and so picked up its route until 2020, terminating on the A96, Powis Terrace.

In 2020, a major reorganisation of classified roads took place in Aberdeen, with the B986 number being retired entirely. It appears to be the case that the Berryden Road corridor will receive an A-road number upon completion of the current dualling project, which would replace the B986 as far north as the A96. Clifton Road is now unclassified, however.