A90 road
Encyclopedia
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, running from Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
to Fraserburgh
Fraserburgh
Fraserburgh is a town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland with a population recorded in the 2001 Census at 12,454 and estimated at 12,630 in 2006. It lies at the extreme northeast corner of Aberdeenshire, around north of Aberdeen, and north of Peterhead...
in Aberdeenshire
Aberdeenshire
Aberdeenshire is one of the 32 unitary council areas in Scotland and a lieutenancy area.The present day Aberdeenshire council area does not include the City of Aberdeen, now a separate council area, from which its name derives. Together, the modern council area and the city formed historic...
.
From Edinburgh, it travels west and over the Forth Road Bridge
Forth Road Bridge
The Forth Road Bridge is a suspension bridge in east central Scotland. The bridge, opened in 1964, spans the Firth of Forth, connecting the capital city Edinburgh, at South Queensferry, to Fife, at North Queensferry...
, before turning into the M90 motorway
M90 motorway
The M90 is a motorway in Scotland. It runs from Inverkeithing, at the north end of the Forth Road Bridge, to Perth, passing Dunfermline, Cowdenbeath and Kinross on the way...
. At Perth
Perth, Scotland
Perth is a town and former city and royal burgh in central Scotland. Located on the banks of the River Tay, it is the administrative centre of Perth and Kinross council area and the historic county town of Perthshire...
, the M90 again becomes the A90, now running north east to Dundee
Dundee
Dundee is the fourth-largest city in Scotland and the 39th most populous settlement in the United Kingdom. It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firth of Tay, which feeds into the North Sea...
and through the Kingsway road system. Then it passes Forfar
Forfar
Forfar is a parish, town and former royal burgh of approximately 13,500 people in Angus, located in the East Central Lowlands of Scotland. Forfar is the county town of Angus, which was officially known as Forfarshire from the 18th century until 1929, when the ancient name was reinstated, and...
, Brechin
Brechin
Brechin is a former royal burgh in Angus, Scotland. Traditionally Brechin is often described as a city because of its cathedral and its status as the seat of a pre-Reformation Roman Catholic diocese , but that status has not been officially recognised in the modern era...
, Stracathro
Stracathro
Stracathro is a small place in Angus, Scotland,-Location:Stracathro is located 2½ miles southeast of Edzell in NE Angus. It lies to the northeast of Brechin on the A90.-History:...
(the site of an ancient Roman Camp), Stonehaven
Stonehaven
Stonehaven is a town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It lies on Scotland's northeast coast and had a population of 9,577 in 2001 census.Stonehaven, county town of Kincardineshire, grew around an Iron Age fishing village, now the "Auld Toon" , and expanded inland from the seaside...
, Bridge of Muchalls
Bridge of Muchalls
Bridge of Muchalls is an entirely residential hamlet in Aberdeenshire, Scotland by the North Sea. It is on the A90 dual carriageway about three miles north of Stonehaven and to the south of Muchalls Castle....
(where the Burn of Muchalls
Burn of Muchalls
The Burn of Muchalls is an easterly flowing stream in Aberdeenshire, Scotland that discharges to the North Sea. Its point of discharge is on a rocky beach set with scenic sea stacks...
flows under), near Muchalls Castle
Muchalls Castle
Muchalls Castle stands overlooking the North Sea in the countryside of Kincardine and Mearns, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The lower course is a well preserved double groined 13th century towerhouse structure, built by the Frasers of Muchalls. Upon this structure, the 17th century castle was begun by...
, near Saint Ternan's Church
Saint Ternan's Church
Saint Ternan's Church is an Episcopal church near Muchalls in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The church was built in 1831 on land granted by the owners of Muchalls Castle. A very early Episcopal church had been constructed within Muchalls Castle itself in the first quarter of the 17th century...
, Newtonhill
Newtonhill
Newtonhill is a farming village in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It has been popular with farm workers and tradesmen for decades for its cheap housing and location, just six miles south of Aberdeen.-Facilities:...
, Portlethen
Portlethen
Portlethen is a town located approximately 7 miles south of Aberdeen, Scotland along the A90. The estimated population is currently 7,327.To the east of Portlethen lie three fishing villages: Findon, Downies and Portlethen Village .Although Portlethen has been granted official town status, it...
, from there through the city of Aberdeen
Aberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
, crossing the Ythan Estuary
Ythan Estuary
The Ythan Estuary is the tidal component of the Ythan River, emptying into the North Sea approximately north of Aberdeen, Scotland. The estuary’s tidal action extends a full inland and has characteristic widths of between and . Besides the tidal channel there are several types of interfaces to...
, on to Peterhead
Peterhead
Peterhead is a town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is Aberdeenshire's biggest settlement , with a population of 17,947 at the 2001 Census and estimated to have fallen to 17,330 by 2006....
on its way to Fraserburgh. The A952 road
A952 road
The A952 road is a major highway in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. This roadway is a north-south connector that serves as an inland bypass to the more coastally aligned A90 road. It runs from Toll of Birness in the south to Cortes in the north, passing through the communities of Ardallie, Clola, Mintlaw...
serves as a more direct inland bypass to the A90 road in its northerly extent.
The Dundee to Aberdeen stretch of the A90 is notorious for speed cameras. Unusually, the 60 mile trip from Dundee to Aberdeen along the A90 entails over a dozen speed cameras including a majority of fixed Gatso
Gatso
Gatso is the brand that Gatsometer BV use on their traffic enforcement cameras, most notably their speed cameras and red light cameras. The most commonly encountered Gatso speed cameras emit radar beams to measure the speed of a passing vehicle...
types as well as locations used by mobile camera vans. These cameras can be found on long fast stretches of road, and shortly before dangerous junctions, such as at the Laurencekirk
Laurencekirk
Laurencekirk is a small town in the ancient county of Kincardineshire, modern county of Aberdeenshire, Scotland, just off the A90 Dundee to Aberdeen main road. It is the largest settlement in the Howe o' the Mearns area and houses the local secondary school; Mearns Academy, which was awarded the...
junction where a 50 mph speed limit is in force. This was introduced due to this junction's appalling safety record. A similar speed restriction was imposed at Forfar
Forfar
Forfar is a parish, town and former royal burgh of approximately 13,500 people in Angus, located in the East Central Lowlands of Scotland. Forfar is the county town of Angus, which was officially known as Forfarshire from the 18th century until 1929, when the ancient name was reinstated, and...
until two new grade-separated junctions were built, after which the restriction was lifted.
The A90 was extended considerably in the early 1990s so as to give a continuous route number from Edinburgh to Aberdeen, since the A90 originally stopped at Inverkeithing
Inverkeithing
Inverkeithing is a town and a royal burgh in Fife, Scotland, located on the Firth of Forth. According to population estimates , the town has a population of 5,265. The port town was given burgh status by King David I of Scotland in the 12th century and is situated about 9 miles north from...
. The former A85
A85 road
The A85 is a major road in Scotland. It runs east from Oban along the south bank of Loch Etive, through Lochawe and Tyndrum, Crianlarich, Lochearnhead, St Fillans and Crieff before passing through Perth, where it crosses the River Tay via Perth Bridge. Its name between the latter two locations is...
went from Perth to Dundee; the A929 Kingsway through Dundee and then towards Forfar; the A94 from Forfar to Stonehaven; and the A92
A92 road
The A92 is a major road in Fife and Angus, Scotland. It runs from Dunfermline to Stonehaven.Starting at its junction with the M90 motorway near Dunfermline, it runs north east past Cowdenbeath, Lochgelly, Kirkcaldy, Glenrothes, Ladybank and Newport-on-Tay...
from Stonehaven to Fraserburgh. The A92 did not go to Peterhead. The evidence of the numbering change can still be seen on the older road signs along the route where the original route numbers have clearly been covered over with "A90" plates.
The section of the A90 between Balmedie and Tipperty is due to be upgraded to dual carriageway in the coming years.
A short stretch of the A90, from the southern terminus of the M90 to Barnton Junction (a junction with the A902), is part of Euroroute E15
European route E15
The European route E 15 is part of the United Nations international E-road network. It is a north-south "reference road", running from Inverness, Scotland south through England and France to Algeciras, Spain...
which runs from Inverness
Inverness
Inverness is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for the Highland council area, and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands of Scotland...
to Algeciras
Algeciras
Algeciras is a port city in the south of Spain, and is the largest city on the Bay of Gibraltar . Port of Algeciras is one of the largest ports in Europe and in the world in three categories: container,...
in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
. The E15 continues northwards on the M90, and southwards on the A902 leading to the Edinburgh City Bypass
Edinburgh City Bypass
The Edinburgh City Bypass, designated as A720, is one of the most important trunk roads in Scotland. Circling around the south of Edinburgh, as the equivalent of a ring road for the coastal city, it links together the A1 towards north-east England, the A702 towards north-west England, the M8...
.
River crossings
A90 bridgeBridge
A bridge is a structure built to span physical obstacles such as a body of water, valley, or road, for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle...
s span numerous river
River
A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...
s, estuaries and burns
Burn (stream)
In Scotland, North East England and some parts of Ireland and New Zealand, burn is a name for watercourses from large streams to small rivers. The term is also used in lands settled by the Scots and Northern English in other countries, notably in Otago, New Zealand, where much of the naming was...
including:
- Carron Water, AberdeenshireCarron Water, AberdeenshireCarron Water is a river in Aberdeenshire, Scotland.Carron Water rises in Fetteresso Forest on the eastern edge of the Grampians. It flows past Fetteresso Castle and discharges into the North Sea at Stonehaven Bay. Carron Water separates the Old Town from Stonehaven's new town , laid out in...
- Cowie WaterCowie WaterThe Cowie Water is a river rising in the Grampian Mountains in Aberdeenshire, Scotland that discharges to the North Sea in the northern part of Stonehaven. south of the ruined Cowie Castle...
- Burn of MuchallsBurn of MuchallsThe Burn of Muchalls is an easterly flowing stream in Aberdeenshire, Scotland that discharges to the North Sea. Its point of discharge is on a rocky beach set with scenic sea stacks...
- Burn of PheppieBurn of PheppieThe Burn of Pheppie is an easterly flowing coastal stream in Aberdeenshire, Scotland that discharges to the North Sea immediately north of the village of Muchalls. Draining chiefly agricultural lands, this stream has a notable lack of turbidity and a pH level of approximately 8.02...
- Burn of ElsickBurn of ElsickThe Burn of Elsick is a coastal stream in Aberdeenshire, Scotland that discharges to the North Sea. This watercourse drains primarily agricultural lands and enters the North Sea at Newtonhill.-History:...
- River DeeRiver Dee, AberdeenshireThe River Dee is a river in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It rises in the Cairngorms and flows through Strathdee to reach the North Sea at Aberdeen...
- River DonRiver Don, AberdeenshireThe River Don is a river in north-east Scotland. It rises in the Grampians and flows eastwards, through Aberdeenshire, to the North Sea at Aberdeen. The Don passes through Alford, Kemnay, Inverurie, Kintore, and Dyce...
- Ythan EstuaryYthan EstuaryThe Ythan Estuary is the tidal component of the Ythan River, emptying into the North Sea approximately north of Aberdeen, Scotland. The estuary’s tidal action extends a full inland and has characteristic widths of between and . Besides the tidal channel there are several types of interfaces to...
- River TayRiver TayThe River Tay is the longest river in Scotland and the seventh-longest in the United Kingdom. The Tay originates in western Scotland on the slopes of Ben Lui , then flows easterly across the Highlands, through Loch Dochhart, Loch Lubhair and Loch Tay, then continues east through Strathtay , in...
- Firth of ForthFirth of ForthThe Firth of Forth is the estuary or firth of Scotland's River Forth, where it flows into the North Sea, between Fife to the north, and West Lothian, the City of Edinburgh and East Lothian to the south...