The Scottish Government has identified the Glen Croe corridor (Option 1), adjacent to the existing road, as its preferred route corridor for the A83 at Rest and Be Thankful.
The route has previously been described by Argyll and Bute Council as ‘the only realistic solution to prevent ongoing disruption’ from landslips.
Transport Scotland said the preferred route corridor outcome followed a preliminary assessment of all 11 route corridor options and over 650 responses to the public consultation
It said Option 1 ‘is more cost effective and quicker to deliver, having significantly less environmental constraints’. However, it is still working on five route options within the preferred corridor, all of which ‘have technical construction challenges’.
Transport secretary Michael Matheson said the Scottish Government is progressing substantial short-term investment in the existing A83.
He has also asked Transport Scotland to progress work to look at a medium-term resilient route through Glen Croe including consideration of the Forestry Track, the Old Military Road and other options on land already owned by Scottish Ministers.
He said: ‘Depending on the statutory consents required, this work will seek to develop finalised proposals within 18 months.
‘Along with this work on the existing A83, we are working in parallel to identify a permanent solution to the road at the Rest and Be Thankful. Following the conclusion of the preliminary assessment of the corridor options under consideration the preferred corridor has been identified as the Glen Croe corridor, Option 1.
‘Identifying the preferred route corridor is a major step forward for this vital work and we are now pushing forward to look at five alternative options within that online corridor and starting the process shortly to appoint design consultants for this work.’
Council leader Robin Currie told Highways: 'The only thing that will actually make a difference to the area, our communities and our visitors is having a reliable route completed and in place, so we are considering the detail of this announcement and what it means for Argyll and Bute.'
Transport Scotland said the range of options within Option 1 ‘spans traditional roads and localised structural protection to full tunnel options with a difference in construction timescales of up to two years for full tunnel options’.
Its detailed assessment will also consider construction risk, cost and environmental impact of the options and a Statutory Environmental Assessment will be published next month.
