Road to close for over two months without community ‘consultation’
Chloe Irvine
The SIC’s environment and transport chairwoman has said she was unaware of plans to close the Upper Kergord road for over two months to lay an underground cable.
Sustainable Shetland’s Frank Hay raised concerns over a notice published in last week’s newspaper that the road will close from 14th May to 18th July.
“The road closure would be a serious inconvenience for regular users of that road. The diversion via Stromfirth is a lengthy detour,” he said.
Mr Hay then questioned whether there had been any consultation over this decision.
Mrs Lyall revealed she did not know about the closure until being approached by The Shetland Times this morning.
“I hadn’t spotted that notice in the paper and I wasn’t aware this was something that was about to begin,” she said.
She raised concerns over SSE’s communication with the community and the impact this closure will have on commuters.
“I think this is potentially indicative of just how much, throughout this whole process they’ve had the community in mind and the impact of the whole project as it has unfolded over the last few years.
“There have been concerns recently about the traffic on the Stromfirth road even as it stands and the fact this is going to divert additional traffic through that road would be a concern to people in the local community.
“It’s unfortunate that there hasn’t been some consultation with the community about this, two months is a lengthy time for them to be working on it,” she added.
SSE has been approached for comment.
Read the full story in this week’s Shetland Times.
Phil Cornwell
They’re building a new road alongside the one they plan to shut for two months – why not get that open to traffic before digging up the ‘old’ road?
Laurence Tait
Or lay the cable in the verge of the new road – some common sense required
Gordon h downing
The “new” road was an access road for vehicles working on the windfarm. The road has to tarred,once this has been done said road will be handed over to the SIC
Michael Bennett
Rank poor timing as far as synchronising the completion of the new road with the excavation of the old road is concerned. However, this is SSE (N) and when were they bothered about us ? Their poor levels of communication / courtesy say it all. They throw their pennies on the floor for us to grovel after and they produce their glossy brochures and their fine PR words but they are not kidding anyone – they don’t give a tinker’s cuss for us.