Scottish Roads Partnership named as preferred bidder for M8 project A Scottish construction consortium has been named as the preferred bidder for the M8 upgrade project. Scottish Roads Partnership, a joint venture between Ferrovial Agroman (Amey) and Lagan, has been awarded the contract by Transport Scotland. The project, which has an estimated value of £415m, will see the completion of the motorway network between Glasgow and Edinburgh, upgrading the A8 Baillieston to Newhouse road. The work will also involve improvements to the Raith Interchange and widening of key sections of the M8, M73 and M74. Construction will begin later in 2013 and is scheduled to be finished by spring 2017. The upgraded route will shave up to 18 minutes off drivers" journey time as well as creating hundreds of support jobs. Amey currently employs over 1500 people across Scotland, including a major office base at Eurocentral. Transport Minister, Keith Brown said: "The Scottish Government is continuing to invest in our transport infrastructure and the improvements made by this project will have long-lasting benefits for people across the central belt and beyond. This project will boost the nation's economy by improving connections for business across Scotland and will directly support the hard-pressed construction industry. The M74 Completion generated 900 construction jobs and we expect this project to be on a similar scale. There will also be opportunities for on the job training for apprentices and local employment. These improvements will also greatly improve road safety and accessibility by playing an essential role in reducing frustration and accidents and providing easier access to and from a number of communities and locations, such as Strathclyde Park. The project, the first procured under the Scottish Government's £2.5bn non-profit distributing model of capital investment, is aimed at delivering value for money for the taxpayer.