Opinion: The good, the bad and the barmy – rating 11 options to replace the Rest and Be Thankful

Speculation was rife after Transport Secretary Michael Matheson’s announcement in August that 11 options were being considered as alternatives to the Rest and Be Thankful.

Argyll and Bute’s MP and council had both called for a tunnel to be built, following repeated landslides which have closed the A83 trunk road.

But when the options for ‘corridors’ were finally revealed, none of the 2,300 words describing them was ‘tunnel’ – although there were plenty of ‘fixed links’, meaning bridges were far more likely.

Instead there are 11 routes, some of which would be remarkably ambitious while several are said to present ‘considerable challenges’ by Transport Scotland.

It isn’t quite a case of ‘all roads lead to Lochgilphead – but four of these routes do go there, much more directly than now.

This would be good for anyone using ferries to Islay and other islands, but access to places such as Lochgoilhead, Inveraray or Cairndow might become much slower, since presumably the current A83 route would not be maintained.

So how many of these options can be seriously considered, and how many were really thought through before being put out for consultation?

We’ve rated them, giving each option marks out of ten for three criteria – deliverability, impact on the environment and impact on the local economy.

Deliverability because this is urgent – traffic is again having to use the single-track Old Military Road today as a precaution during rain, and closures of the main A83 are getting more and more frequent. As well as the delays caused to traffic, there must also be a real safety risk. As ever with government projects, cost will also be a major factor.

Impact on the environment and landscape should also be key, as many of the routes would include part of Scotland’s first national park, and all would affect parts of the west coast which are renowned for their landscapes.  It’s also worth remembering that several of these routes were first suggested by the Cowal Fixed Links Group, with rail lines as well as roads proposed, but the options we have now are purely roads.

And local economy because businesses in Arrochar, Cairndow and Inveraray could lose a lot of their current passing trade, while some alternative routes would vastly increase the amount of traffic through other settlements.

So here are the 11 routes in ascending order of scores; the public consultation runs until October 30 and can be accessed here.

Helensburgh – Cowal – Lochgilphead: 4/30 

It’s hard to believe that the people who included this route have ever been to some of the places involved.

It involves bridges over both the Gareloch and Loch Long and, like several of the routes, this draws on ideas put forward by the Cowal Fixed Link Group – but that group’s chairman told this website four years ago that that a bridge for Loch Long would be unlikely: “The prevailing winds could mean frequent closures. This particular link segment would probably be a tunnel.”

Any crossing of Loch Long at that point would also have to take into account that it will be used by MoD vessels including the huge new Queen Elizabeth class aircraft carriers, as well as tankers going to the Finnart oil terminal.

And it ‘generally follows the B833’ – are they seriously talking about turning the Mill Brae into a trunk road, which would then go through Kilcreggan village? Did anyone ask people in Helensburgh and Rhu how they would react to such an enormous increase in through traffic?

After crossing Loch Long it goes alongside the Holy Loch to Sandbank, then to the head of Loch Striven (a very steep road) and narrow roads to Otter Ferry before a third bridge on the way to Lochgilphead.

One potential positive might be that some shops in Helensburgh in particular would benefit from the passing trade, but other communities would miss out, and it’s hard to argue that this would outweigh the rather long list of disadvantages, which must include cost and the length of the project.

Score: Deliverability 0, environment 2, local economy 2

Helensburgh – Cowal – Cairndow, 5/30

Not quite as, er, ambitious as the previous route, with only two bridges, but this has many of the same ‘significant challenges’ – bridging the busy Gareloch and Loch Long, as well as taking huge amounts of traffic through Helensburgh, Rosneath and Kilcreggan.

The winding single track road from Ardentinny to the A815 would have to be dramatically upgraded, with a new road built on the north shore of Loch Long, which is in the national park.

It takes a right after reaching the A815 and heads back to Cairndow, so doesn’t cut off that community in the same way, but it would still require over 50km of roads to be dramatically upgraded – which seems impossible in a couple of instances.

Deliverability 0, environment 2, local economy 3

North Ayrshire – Cowal – Lochgilphead, 6/30

This would see bridges crossing the Firth of Clyde to and from Little Cumbrae, then across Bute to another bridge to Colintraive.

It then takes a left at Glendaruel and follows the routes of the very narrow and winding C11 and B8000 to Otter Ferry – where there would be fixed link number four.

So that’s four bridges, 6.7km of completely new road and 62km of rural roads which would need to be transformed out of all recognition – all to get to Lochgilphead.

It would be a very direct route for ferry traffic, but would go down like a brick budgie in places like Cairndow and Lochgoilhead, while the civil engineering required would be costly and time-consuming.

Deliverability 1, environment 2, local economy 3

North Ayrshire – Cairndow, 7/30

This is actually two options, both of which leave the mainland near West Kilbride, heading to Bute via Little Cumbrae.

Route A crosses Bute and rejoins the mainland at the current ferry terminus of Colintraive, then following the routes of the A886 and A815 to Cairndow. There would be three fixed links, two of them crossing the Firth of Clyde with all the attendant shipping issues and ‘significant technical challenges’.

Route B also has three bridges, but once on Bute it would then cross over to Dunoon, then taking the A815 to Cairndow.

Quite apart from the bridges, these routes would need 6.7km of new road and serious upgrading of at least 76km of existing roads which in most cases are a long way from the required standard; they do avoid the national park however.

Deliverability 1, environment 3, local economy 3

Inverclyde – Cowal – Lochgilphead, 7/30

This includes what would be one of the UK’s longest bridges, and takes a completely different approach from the south, with a 3.9km fixed link going from Cloch to Dunoon.

Naval vessels, oil tankers and cruise ships all use this stretch of water regularly, and the consultation document conservatively states that this ‘will present considerable challenges’.

It then follows the routes of the C09 and C11, two single-track roads, as well as including a 2.7km fixed link over Loch Fyne.

The consultation document states that only 5.5km of the full 76km route would require a new road being built, but the B- and C-class roads used would require very major investment.

It might boost trade for businesses in Dunoon, but would be bad news for anyone fancying lunch in Inveraray or a weekend at Drimsynie.

Deliverability 1, environment 3, local economy 3

Inverclyde – Cowal – Cairndow, 9/30

This is similar to the previous route but heads east for Cairndow rather than west to Lochgilphead, so requires only two bridges and no C roads would be upgraded.

It would still be hugely ambitious and far from the quickest and cheapest solution

Deliverability 2, environment 3, local economy 4

A82 – Cowal – Lochgilphead, 6/30

This leaves the A82 via the A817 through Glen Fruin, then the A814 to Whistlefield and a bridge over a stretch of Loch Long which is used by aircraft carriers going to Glen Mallan and oil tankers heading to Finnart.

The winding single track road from Ardentinny to the A815 would have to be dramatically upgraded, with a new road built on the north shore of Loch Long, which is in the national park.

It also follows the routes of the C09 and C11, two very narrow single-track roads, as well as including a 2.7km fixed link over Loch Fyne.

The consultation document states that only 5.5km of the full 76km route would require a new road being built, but the B- and C-class roads used would require very major investment, if indeed they are feasible at all.

Deliverability 1, environment 3, local economy 2

A82 – Cowal – Cairndow, 9/30

As with the previous route but going to Cairndow, so requires less upgrading of minor roads and ‘only’ one bridge.

The Transport Scotland document says a section of these two routes would use ‘ MoD-owned carriageway’, but from the map it isn’t clear where this would be, as the A817 and A814 are public roads.

The A817 ‘Haul Road’ was originally built by the MoD for construction traffic when the Coulport armaments depot was being expanded, and although spectacular it would need to be upgraded if the amount of traffic was dramatically increased.

Deliverability 2, environment 3, local economy 4

Glen Fyne, 16/30

This would see a 15km stretch of road built in the national park, running from Inverarnan on Loch Lomondside and to the head of Loch Fyne, near to the Oyster Bar. On the plus side, a major project to upgrade that stretch of the A82 is has been planned for some time – on the minus side, it would increase traffic on a stretch which is already notorious for accidents and delays.

It would mean longer journeys, as the route would effectively follow two sides of a triangle, and would have more problems with environment and probably landscape than the first option, involving major road construction in the national park.

On the other hand it would require far less construction than any of the proposals already discussed, so would be easier to budget for and to deliver urgently. 

Deliverability 5, environment 4, local economy 7

Glen Kinglas, 18/30

This too would start at Inverarnan beside Loch Lomond, this time building 12km of new road through Glen Kinglas and linking with the A83 just north of the Rest.

On length of carriageway alone it would be the cheapest and quickest option so far, while it would probably the most attractive for residents and businesses in Lochgoilhead.

Deliverability 6, environment 4, local economy 8

Glen Croe, 24/30

There are actually two options here – one which ‘generally follows a similar profile to the existing road’ and one which is on the other side of the valley.

The first seems fraught with difficulty given the scale and frequency of landslides there, plus predictions that heavy rain will only become more frequent.

The second and would still run from Ardgartan to the car park at the Rest and be Thankful, broadly following the route of what is currently a forestry track.

Assuming that this side of Glen Croe remains more stable, this would have to be the bookies’ favourite – it is shorter and therefore cheaper than all the routes which follow, and would mean that 

It is in Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park, so the landscape and protection of the environment would be issues, although it’s hard to imagine any planning application being refused for such a direct route, given the urgency of the situation. 

Deliverability 8, environment 7, local economy 9