Campaigners fighting new plans for a Western Link Road in Elgin have secured big name backing in the form of a Hollywood star.
Actor Kevin McKidd, who was born and raised in the town, lent his weight to their fight during a visit home to his family over the festive period.
He met members of the Elgin Designing Streets Action Group to discuss their concerns about the revised scheme and to offer his support to their ongoing battle.
The talks took place on Wittet Drive, one of the streets which is likely to be most affected by the proposed new route.
Following the meeting, leading campaigner James Wiseman said the Grey’s Anatomy star was well versed on the issue.
He said: “Kevin already knew the area well and had a great deal of knowledge about the proposal.
“Seeing the area first hand, he questioned the overriding necessity of the scheme and understood the concerns residents have about routing traffic – particularly heavy goods vehicles – through a residential area and past schools with the demolition of people’s homes.
“He also drew a telling comparison between the area where he grew up, where residential housing and parking are set back from the main A941 Lossie Road as it leaves Elgin, and these proposals which would see traffic on the doorsteps of residents of Edgar Road and Wittet Drive.”
James MacKessack-Leitch, who also met Mr McKidd, said it was a “boost” to receive such high-profile backing.
He added: “Throughout the course of the campaign opposing the Western Link Road proposals we’ve been regularly contacted by people who grew up in Elgin, or spent time living here, offering their support.”
“From the petition, to the questionnaire, to the planning objections, people from all over with a connection to Elgin can see the folly of this project and have been making their voices heard.
“It’s great for the campaign to have the support of Kevin, and gives us a much needed boost after the setback of having the project resurrected only a few weeks ago. Ultimately though it’s down to the people of Elgin, and Moray, to hold the elected members to account, and I hope many more will be inspired to take the opportunity to get involved and make a difference.”
Mr McKidd, 41, shot to fame alongside Ewan McGregor and Robert Carlisle in the film Trainspotting in 1996.
Born and raised in Elgin, he was a member of the Moray Youth Theatre, before going on to study engineering at Edinburgh University.
There he became involved with Bedlam Theatre, the university’s student company, and decided to give up on engineering and pursue acting full-time.
The father-of-two, who now stays in the US, is one of the stars of the hit medical drama Grey’s Anatomy and has collected awards for his role as Owen Hunt.
The Western Link Road scheme resurfaced at the end of last year, just weeks after an earlier proposal was blocked by councillors following a planning hearing.
The route has been designed to link Edgar Road and Wittet Drive, with the construction of a new road bridge over the Aberdeen-Inverness railway line.
Campaigners thought they had won their decade-long battle when Moray Council’s planning committee rejected the development on November 13.
But their joy turned to anger just two weeks later when the economic development and infrastructure services (ED&I) committee recommended an amended application to build the Western Link Road be tabled “as soon as possible”.
Supporters of the road claim it remains a “vital” strategic project for Elgin’s future which is also in the best interests of Moray as a whole.
However, opponents maintain that the case for the road has not been fully considered.