Public meeting called to discuss long-term plans for Stromeferry by-pass
Proposals for providing a long-term solution to the A 890 Stromeferry By-pass will be outlined at a public exhibition at Lochcarron Village Hall on Monday 25 June to be followed by a public meeting. The exhibition will run from 3 pm – 6 pm and the public meeting will follow at 7 pm.
The Highland Council promised to return to the community before the summer recess to discuss long-term proposals for the road, which was closed for more than three months at the start of this year as the result of rockfalls and extensive works to make safe the rockface at a point 100 yards west of the avalanche shelter. The overall cost of dealing with the recent rock fall, including the ferries and additional train services is estimated at £2.8 million.
The main proposals involve the bridging of the narrows between Lochcarron and Stromeferry – at points near the existing slipways; a by-pass through the Attadale Estate; and a number of options for an upgrading of the existing route, including construction of a 2km tunnel. Initial cost estimates range between £23 million - £115 million though these may change as options are worked up in more detail.
Councillor Graham Philips, Chairman of the Transport Environmental and Community Services Committee, will chair the public meeting.
He said: “We are honouring our commitment to discuss with the local community the long-term plans for the upgrade of this important route. We appreciate fully the inconvenience the local communities have suffered as a result of past and more recent prolonged periods of closure caused by rockfall. We will welcome the views of the public on the options we will be displaying at the exhibition and others that we may have overlooked. This will be the first of a number of consultations with the public as we take the project through its various stages of design development.”
Following the road closure on 22 December, last year, the Council commissioned a car ferry and a passenger ferry to maintain links between Lochcarron and Stromeferry and an early morning train service between Strathcarron and Kyle was organised by Scotrail to take pupils from Applecross, Kishorn and Lochcarron to Plockton High School in time for the start of the school day. These were withdrawn when traffic was diverted on to the railway line on 26 March. The road was fully reopened on 23 April.