A temporary bund costing £950,000 is to be constructed next to the Old Military Road within weeks to ease woes at the Rest and Be Thankful.
The area has experienced significant landslips in recent months, with thousands of tonnes of debris sliding down the hillside impacting the A83 Tarbet to Campbeltown road.
Road operator Bear Scotland has said the construction will “increase protection” on the Old Military Road which is currently being used as a diversion.
The bund will be formed of modular units filled with material and stacked to form a protective barrier.
#A83 #RestAndBeThankful: Old Military Road remains *OPEN* with traffic being convoyed through Glen Croe. Here's the view from the OMR earlier this morning after some snow overnight – we had a gritter patrolling the route to make sure it remained safe for road users. pic.twitter.com/gSh2uJLBGb
— BEAR NW Trunk Roads (@NWTrunkRoads) December 3, 2020
The 574ft long, 19ft high bund will be created next to the foot of the vulnerable channel formed by landslips in August and September, and is due to be in place by Christmas – weather allowing.
The barrier will be largely backfilled with material from previous landslips.
Transport Secretary Michael Matheson announced the works after meeting stakeholders and businesses to discuss the next steps for the road.
He said: “This will provide greater resilience to the local diversion, helping to ensure continuity of access to the region.”
A design team is assessing the possibility of using the nearby forestry track as an alternative route through Glen Croe and will are expected to make an announcement next week.
Specialist engineers are currently having to closely monitor the hillside and weather conditions on a daily basis to ensure the diversion can safely remain open.
Eddie Ross, Bear Scotland’s north-west representative said: “The Old Military Road is operating well as a local diversion and after thorough assessments of the hillside we’re keeping the route operational 24 hours a day as long as weather conditions allow.
“Installation of this new bund will give us the opportunity to use the local diversion route with greater confidence once it is complete later this month.
“As ever we’re continuing to put road user safety first.
“We thank the local community and all road users for their patience and assure them we’re doing everything we can to address the ongoing situation at the Rest.”
Real-time journey information is available from the Traffic Scotland website www.trafficscotland.org, or through their twitter page.