KATE Forbes has welcomed Scottish Government funding for a world-renowned tourist hotspot on the Isle of Skye.
Highland Council will receive £350,000 from the Islands Programme Fund, understood to be earmarked for improvements to the final stretch of single track road to the Fairy Pools – which has struggled to cope with over 200,000 visitors annually.
Improvements are also planned separately for the Claggan Road and Neist Point.
The road to the Fairy Pools, which also serves the township of Glenbrittle, has deteriorated under the volume of vehicles coming to the iconic attraction.
“I am delighted that the Highland Council has received this Scottish Government funding, and I expect it will make a huge difference – especially for residents,” she said.
“I met with communities on Skye on a number of occasions and I am aware that significantly increased numbers of visitors in recent years have greatly exacerbated many of the existing roads issues."
READ MORE: Councillor accuses charity of 'creating problems' at top Skye tourist spot
Forbes added: “Over the course of this summer, I have heard from local residents of people being unable to access hospital appointments on time, care assistants being unable to attend to their patients, or take their children to scheduled activities – most of these are caused by single track roads being blocked by congestion – or occasionally by vehicles becoming stuck on verges.
"Put simply, the present setup was never designed to cope with the current volume of traffic.
“This targeted investment from the Scottish Government will help enormously, and I look forward to the successful completion of the project.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here