Medium-term Rest fix is ‘appeasement’
Mid Argyll councillor Dougie Philand feels some of the language used in last month’s A83 Taskforce meeting amounts to “appeasement” of those living and working in the region.
Jenny Gilruth, the Scottish Government transport minister, chaired a meeting of the A83 Taskforce held in Arrochar in late January to provide an update on medium-term solutions for the troubled Rest and be Thankful pass, dogged by closures amid landslide risks in wet weather, for more than a decade.
The Scottish Government’s transport minister said that realignment work to the south end of the existing Old Military Road through the Glen Croe corridor would get underway “later this year”.
A Transport Scotland statement read: “This work is part of the medium-term solution to the challenges at the Rest and be Thankful, aiming to make it a more resilient diversion route, until the long-term solution to the problems at the Rest and be Thankful is constructed.”
Ms Gilruth said at the Arrochar summit: “The Scottish Government remains committed to a longterm solution to the landslip risks at the A83 Rest and be Thankful.
“There is a clear need for pace and urgency on delivering these improvements for the local community and local business who often feel the brunt of closure and the associated impacts that creates.
“A final decision on the long-term solution will be announced by the spring of this year.” Councillor Philand, who alongside South Kintyre councillor Donald Kelly, is part of the RABT Campaign group founded in 2012, felt that some of the language in the latest Taskforce statement was designed to appease Argyll-based stakeholders, such as hauliers in southern Argyll relying on the A83 stretch to connect with the Central Belt. He said: “You cannot believe it has been more than 10 years already that we have been talking about a solution for the Rest and be Thankful.
“The mention of disruption to local business feels, to me, like little more than paying lip service to the serious economic impact caused by the continued disruption on this lifeline road for people and businesses in Argyll.
“Another thing that came out of the meeting was a long-term permanent solution being decided upon ‘in the spring’.
“That is as early as next month.
“When we see the decision, we will be able to see whether our concerns are being taken seriously or not.
“I cannot get away from the fact that if such a serious problem was affecting parts of intercity roads like the M8 or A9, this would have been dealt with years ago.
“There is a continuing sense of frustration around the issue.”