Community Choices footpath upgrade gets underway at the Sletts

Work to upgrade the Sletts Footpath in Lerwick will start next week, to begin work voted for by the Shetland public through the Shetland Community Choices initiative earlier this year.

The improvement work will see the 520 metre path resurfaced along its length from the “Matchbox house” to the junction with Breiwick Road.

Offering views of the Lerwick coastline and Breiwick, the path is said to be a popular route for walkers throughout the year.

The existing narrow path that cuts across the rocky coastline will be widened to a width of at least 1.2 metres or wider where possible, and will improve access for people with wheelchairs.

For safety reasons, the council says the footpath will be closed during the upgrade work which is expected to take around six to eight weeks, weather depending.

Roads manager Dave Coupe said: “The Sletts Footpath is well used by locals and visitors and we hope that these improvements will improve access to allow more people to enjoy this scenic stretch of coastline.

“We would ask people to please bear with us during the next few weeks while construction work is underway. To allow us help maintain a safe environment we’d also ask people to use alternative footways and not to enter the work area.”

The Sletts Footpath upgrade works are expected to cost £87,500 to be funded by £67,500 from Shetland Community Choices and £20,000 from the SIC.

Shetland Community Choices is a participatory budgeting initiative with £50,000 provided by the Scottish government, match funded by Shetland Islands Council. A total budget of £100,000 was available to support various projects decided by a public vote in March 2017.