Promise of action to relieve A82FW road congestion in Fort William

SCOTTISH transport minister Humza Yousaf says the government is aware of traffic problems on the A82 through Fort William and has pledged a solution will be found.

Mr Yousaf's comments were part of last week’s announcement that action was finally being taken to see what measures could be adopted to ease the traffic congestion that plagued Fort William this summer.

Transport Scotland said an assessment of possible short-term interventions to improve journey times on the A82 through the town is to be carried out.

The work will help establish if engineering improvements can be made to improve congestion and will consider the impact of any of these changes on surrounding roads to make sure interventions are as effective as possible.

Transport Scotland intends to have testing completed by early next year with the aim of making any required changes before the 2018 tourist season.

A longer term appraisal of land use and transport options is to be taken forward by The Highland Council with support from Transport Scotland. Together with the short-term traffic study, this will provide an evidence base to make best use of existing infrastructure and support the planned growth of Fort William and the wider area.

Mr Yousaf said the Holyrood government well understood the important part this section of trunk road plays in the local economy and says it wants to do what it can to improve journey times to support local businesses and help people get around.

‘The trunk road assessment will help us establish if there are small interventions, such as widening or changes to junctions, which can be implemented in the short term on the trunk road in Fort William to improve traffic flow,’ he said.

‘Transport Scotland aims to keep stakeholders up-to-date through regular meetings and correspondence with The Highland Council, Fort William Traffic Congestion Working Group and the A82 Partnership.'

Chairman of Fort William Traffic Congestion Working Group and The A82 Partnership Ben Thompson, councillor for Caol and Mallaig, said residents, businesses and visitors will be delighted to hear of this progress.

‘Particularly important is the commitment from Transport Scotland to try and have road improvements in place ahead of the 2018 tourist season,’ said Mr Thompson.

‘The longer term appraisal for transport options in Fort William is vital for the West Highland economy. Such improvements have been a goal of the Lochaber community for many years and I’m encouraged to see the need has been recognised by Transport Scotland in its commitment to work with The Highland Council on the appraisal.’

But Lochaber’s constituency MSP Kate Forbes, while also welcoming the survey, says the current road lay-out in Fort William is ‘past its sell-by date’ and the quicker a new relief road was put in place the better.

Ms Forbes added: ‘Time is of the absolute essence. I welcome the next stage in the process and recognise it as an important step, but I’ll be happy when we actually have an alternative route built.’