£120k design contract for Dundee Eden Project active travel route

A consultant is to be appointed to create an active travel route linking Eden Project to Dundee city centre.

Dundee City Council is looking to spend up to £120k for an external consultant to create concept designs for the project.

This, the council says, will be a route people can walk, wheel or cycle from the Eden Project to the ‘eastern quarter’ area of Dundee city centre.

The overall contract value is anticipated to be between £50k and £60k in 2024/2025 and the same in 2025/2026.

The contract will be funded from money earmarked for sustainable travel projects in the council’s capital plan.

Three active travel projects on the table

The Eden Project active travel route is one of three projects councillors will hear details of at a committee meeting on Monday.

Also on the agenda are active travel corridors along Lochee Road and Arbroath Road, both of which will integrate active travel and bus priority measures.

Committee members will be asked to approve the commencement of a procurement exercise seeking an external company to work on the projects.

A council report details the estimated value of this contract will be between £600 – £650k in 2024/2025 and £1.2 to £1.3m in 2025/2026.

The committee are also recommended to agree to a similar contract for an active travel project in Dundee city centre.

Work underway at Eden Project site

Plans for an Eden Project to be created in Dundee were unanimously approved by councillors earlier this year.

Work is currently under way to get the East Dock site ready for development.

This involves levelling ground and moving some infrastructure, a process expected to last 18 months to two years.

The project is expected to cost in the region of £130m, which will be raised through support for the UK and Scottish governments, philanthropists and corporate sponsors.