Notorious tourist road set for major upgrade

A NOTORIOUS stretch of a major tourist route will be widened to improve safety and speed up journeys.

The narrow, winding portion of the A82 beside Loch Lomond will become almost a fifth wider than at present, it was announced yesterday.

The project, expected to cost between £290million and £380million, comes after the volume of traffic on the 11-mile stretch between Tarbet, Argyll, and Inverarnan, Stirlingshire, increased to 4,000 vehicles every day.

Large lorries and coaches often have difficulties passing each other on narrow parts of the road, which is sandwiched between a steep embankment and the loch.

The widening scheme was selected over other proposals, including a tunnel through the hillside or under the loch, which would have cost £4billion.

Transport Minister Humza Yousaf said: ‘I have met many people and businesses who use the route and they have asked for this change to be made.

‘Upgrading this route will lead to improved journey times.’

No timescale has yet been given for the upgrade.