The project is funded by Transport Scotland’s Bus Partnership Fund (BPF) and delivered by the Bus Service Improvement Partnership (BSIP) Group, comprised of the Highland Council, NHS Highland, HITRANS and Stagecoach.

The route will help in reducing congestion on Old Perth Road outside Raigmore Hospital and improve bus services to each of Raigmore Estate, Raigmore Hospital and the National Treatment Centre - Highland.

City leader and local Ward Councillor, Ian Brown said: “A new bus gate has been an aspiration of all stakeholders for many years. I am delighted work is finally completed as it has taken some time to get here. I want to thank everyone for their patience.

“With the steady expansion of this key area of the city the flow of traffic is very prone to delays and regular bottlenecks. Having a direct link for buses and emergency vehicles between the hospital and Raigmore Estate will provide residents with a more frequent and reliable service at a time when it is ever more important to offer alternatives to the car.”

Richard MacDonald, director of estates, facilities and capital planning from NHS Highland, added: “We’re pleased to see the new route open. With this in place bus services between Raigmore Hospital and our National Treatment Centre will improve as well as traffic congestion in the surrounding area, particularly on Old Perth Road. My thanks go to all stakeholders for their involvement in the successful delivery of this project.”

Robert Andrew, chair of the BSIP Group, commented: “We are delighted to see the Raigmore Bus Gate open. The Bus Gate has been an aspiration of stakeholders for many years and will play a positive role in reducing congestion and contributing to improved journey times for bus services operating in the area. As a result of the initiative, Raigmore Estate will have a more frequent service to the City Centre, whilst Stagecoach are reinvesting the resource previously used to provide the dedicated Raigmore Estate service to make improvements to the frequency of the service linking the Hilton area with the City Centre. With many areas of the City benefitting from better bus services, we hope that many people will be attracted to using these improved services.”

Cabinet secretary for transport, Fiona Hyslop said: “I am really pleased to see that the bus gate route is open, providing improved public transport access to the important facilities at the National Treatment Centre, Raigmore Hospital and as well as improving connectivity with the city centre. It is great to see the collaborative work of the Highland Bus Service Improvement Partnership members in the delivery of this project to help bus passengers access the site faster and more reliably.

“I also welcome the wider work underway with the Partnership to encourage more bus use, including the prioritisation of bus at traffic lights in the city centre on cross city routes to help buses get through them more quickly. This work is key to our goal of getting more people using public transport and achieving our world leading commitment to reduce car kilometres by 20% by 2030.”