Forres

The small town of Forres lies east of 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-east 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. From the town centre, the B9010 heads south-east to Rafford and Dallas, before turning north, taking the long way round to reach Elgin.

Junction

The roundabout in the centre of town

Towards the western end of the bypass, the A940 terminates on the A96, having been extended along a pre-existing street when the bypass was opened. The junction is a simple at grade T junction, with a right turning lane protected by a central reservation on the bypass. Originally it was a staggered crossroads, with an unclassified road providing access to one of the industrial areas to the north, but that road (over a level crossing) was closed and a new bridge built further west when the railway was realigned and a new station built in 2017. These two and the access to the railway station are the only junctions on the bypass.

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
A96	Inverness, Nairn
A96	Aberdeen, Elgin, Fraserburgh (A98)
A940	Grantown on Spey (A939)
B9010	Rafford
B9011	Findhorn, Burghead	Former line of A96 through town