Campaigners say the upgrade works was decided ‘without full and comprehensive cost benefit analysis of all options’
Loch Lomond’s Bonnie Banks risk being ‘severely damaged’ by plans to upgrade the A82, according to a conservation group.
Friends of Loch Lomond and The Trossachs is speaking out about the Scottish Government’s proposed revamp of the stunning lochside route.
The Scottish Government believes the best option to improve the route is to create a ‘low road’, a proposal which would widen and straighten the A82 as it runs along the iconic water’s edge.
But the “significant engineering works” at the lochside put the area at risk, according to campaigners. Friends of Loch Lomond and The Trossachs say the ‘low road’ decision was made “without full and comprehensive cost benefit analysis of all options”.
The group’s chairman, John Urquhart, said a fresh report by Greenspace Scotland, that measures the monetary and health value of Scotland’s Blue Spaces, has backed up its position on the proposals, writes the Helensburgh Advertiser.
He said: “Greenspace Scotland has reinforced the argument we have been making for several years that the Scottish Government’s plans for the A82 upgrade risk severely damaging one of the last stretches of Loch Lomond’s Bonnie Banks which can readily be accessed and enjoyed by the public.”
The proposal would see “significant engineering works” along the side of the loch, with the road widened and straightened in the process.
Mr Urquhart said the work could destroy “bluebell rich temperate oak rainforest, rocky headlands and attractive shingle beaches”.
He said similar upgrades south of Tarbet, had resulted in the “once beautiful shoreline” being replaced with a heavy rock armour used to protect road edges. The group say a “holistic approach” inspired by the Pass of Killiecrankie is the better option.
They want to see a new route, a ‘high road’. above the railway line, bypassing Ardlui and Tarbet, leaving the current road in place for “locals, as well as for visitors walking and cycling and accessing the loch.”
Mr Urquhart said this would create a “straighter, faster and safer route”, providing stunning views over the loch while also resolving serious road safety concerns in Ardlui and Tarbet, saying the Falls of Falloch car park could be “completely re-imagined”.
Transport Scotland says the A82 is a “vital artery” for communities and many sections of the road date back to the 1920s, meaning it is much narrower in places than it would be if built today.
The government body says it will ensure future upgrade “fits within the area’s outstanding landscape” and environment and “maintains the renowned beauty of the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park” whilst minimising disruption.
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