B9011

The B9011 is a short B-road in north Moray.

The B9011/A940 Roundabout in Forres

The route originally started at the eastern end of Forres, but when this small Moray town was bypassed, the B9011 was extended along the former A96 through the town. Therefore it now starts at a roundabout on Nairn Road at the western end of the bypass and heads into town on Nairn Road, past a supermarket to reach another roundabout with the A940. This route has also been extended, along Market Street, to meet the bypass. Immediately beyond the roundabout the B9011 crosses the Burn of Mosset on Castle Bridge and runs past a pleasant park, before it enters the town centre, running north east along the High Street. Forres is a historic and bustling town, with a good range of shops. The High Street opens up into the small market place, where the old market cross stands in front of the Tollbooth. Narrowing once more, the B9010 departs to the right on Tollbooth Street, taking a strange circuitous route to Elgin, while the B9011 continues past the shops. A right turn for South Street is the signed route onto the B9010, beyond which another fine park sits on the roadside.

The route continues ahead along the tree lined Victoria Road through the eastern suburbs to rejoin the A96 at Findhorn Roundabout. Hidden in the housing estate nearby is Sueno's Stone, a large prehistoric monolith, protected by a massive glass case. The B9011 crosses the A96 and winds north eastwards across fields and through some forestry before crossing the railway line into Kinloss. The village is dominated by the former RAF Kinloss, a wartime airfield now used by the Army. Here traffic lights control a TOTSO with the B9089 near Kinloss Abbey, and the B9010 turns northwards running, along the shore between the vast tidal basin of Findhorn Bay and the airfield. There are some stunning views through the gorse bushes and across the bay, and a couple of small parking areas, although the best way to explore is on foot or by bike, with a cycle track alongside the road.

Running alongside Findhorn Bay

Findhorn is a pretty coastal village lined along the edge of Findhorn Bay, and backing into the dunes of the Moray Firth. A long line of large houses making the most of the views are strung along the roadside before the route forks at the start of a large one-way loop through the village. The old heart of Findhorn doesn't seem to have street names, the properties just being numbered, so the route forks left, sticking to the coast road as far as the old harbour area, where it turns inland and doubles back on itself past the shop back to the coast. The last few yards are not one-way, forcing a TOTSO with a two-way road which zig-zags through to Seaforth Place, so providing a short cut to a small area of the village without having to navigate the whole loop.

History

The route has been changed at both ends since it was first classified. It has obviously been extended through Forres along the old pre-bypass route of the A96. The B9011 then originally started at a sharp fork off Victoria Road and followed Findhorn Road past Sueno's Stone. This is now cut by the bypass, but the old line of the route crossed the north west side of the Findhorn Roundabout, roughly where the cycle route now runs. The road to Kinloss has seen some improvement, presumably to aid access to the airfield. The first noticeable realignment is a wide verge on the right, followed by a loop of old road to the left at Cassieford Cottages. However, the approaches to the railway bridge don't seem to have been improved to the same extent, if at all.

At the northern end, the original terminus seems to have been, as with so many roads in Northern Scotland, at the old pier of Findhorn's harbour. The loop at the end is first shown on the 1972 OS One Inch map, presumably resulting from the creation of the one-way system around the narrow streets.

The 1922 MOT Road List defines this route as: Forres - Findhorn