Forres
Forres Farrais | |||
Location Map ( geo) | |||
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County | |||
Moray | |||
Highway Authority | |||
Moray | |||
Transport Scotland Roads | |||
A96 | |||
Places related to the A96 | |||
The small town of Forres lies astride the River Findhorn in the north west corner of Moray. It is a busy town within easy reach of both Inverness and Elgin for commuters, and has seen a lot of growth in recent years. A few miles to the north is the former RAF base at Kinloss, now used by other parts of the military, and also the pretty village of Findhorn, clustered around the vast natural bay and popular with tourists. Forres itself is more a service town with industrial estates than a tourist town, but it is surrounded by good walking country, with forests and hills to explore
The main road past the town is the A96 Aberdeen to Inverness Trunk road. Government plans should see this route fully upgraded to dual carriageway by the 2030s, and whilst Forres is already bypassed it is only a single carriageway hemmed between the town and the railway. The early stages of route selection for the new bypass are currently ongoing, with a view to start on site in the early 2020s, after the completion of the Inverness to Nairn section. The bypass is served by roundabouts at either end, with the B9011 from Findhorn having been extended through the town along the former A96. At the east end of town, the B9010 heads south east to Rafford and Dallas, before turning north, taking the long way round to reach Elgin.
Junction
Towards the eastern end of the bypass, the A940 terminates on the A96. The junction is a simple at grade T junction, with a right turning lane protected by a central reservation on the bypass. It is actually a staggered crossroads, with an unclassified road providing access to one of the industrial areas to the north. Other than access to the railway station, this is the only junction on the bypass, and it seems odd that the A940 wasn't turned along the former A96 to meet one or both of the roundabouts instead.
The old junction in the centre of town is a roundabout. Sitting on the west side of the Castle Bridge across the Burn of Mosset, it is the former terminus of the A940, before it was extended to the bypass.
Routes
Route | To | Notes |
Inverness, Nairn | ||
Aberdeen, Elgin, Fraserburgh (A98) | ||
Grantown on Spey (A939) | ||
Rafford | ||
Findhorn, Burghead | Former line of A96 through town |