Bixter to Aith road set for £1.5 million improvement

Shetland’s West Side road network is set for a significant upgrade thanks to a major £1.5 million improvement plan.

The SIC’s roads service has been awarded the contract to upgrade the B9071 from Bixter to Aith.

The job will see the construction of 900 metres of two-lane road and 400 metres of single-track road with passing places. Work is due to start by the end of this month with a contract duration of 52 weeks.

West side councillor Frank Robertson said: “As member for the area, I am particularly pleased to see the Peats o’ Twatt road improvement at last underway.

“With the junior high school, the West Mainland Leisure Centre, the lifeboat station and all the public and private housing developments in Aith, the Aith to Bixter road carries one of the highest volumes of traffic on the West Side.

“The existing single track section over the Peats o’ Twatt is now in a very poor condition and the construction of a new two lane roadway will greatly improve communications and be of long term benefit to what is a growing and thriving community.”