A motion before Argyll and Bute Council tomorrow will hear a call for the Scottish Government to take swift action on the Rest and Be Thankful.
The A85 Inveraray to Arrochar road has been beset with landslips, or the threat of landslips, for at least a decade – often bringing traffic to a standstill or forcing people to take a long detour.
The road that runs all the way from Campbeltown to Arrochar on Loch Lomond-side is one of only two major routes that takes people in and out of Argyll, and is described as a “strategic route”.
Councillors Robin Currie, the leader of the council and Jim Lynch, leader of the SNP group, working across political divides, will bring the motion calling for ground to be broken on a “new Rest and Be Thankful”.
It calls for the planning, construction and opening of the replacement route within the life of the this Scottish Parliament.
Urgent action
Councillors want to press home the case for “urgent action without delay”.
The motion, under standing order 13, reads: “Let this be the council term where we see a very significant leap forward towards the permanent solution that our communities desperately need to see in use; where we see ground broken on the ‘new Rest and Be Thankful’.
“Over the past four – at least – council terms, there is one issue which results consistently in unanimity across the council chamber.
“That issue is the need for urgent action at the A83 Rest and Be Thankful, Argyll and Bute’s lifeline in every single aspect of life in this region.
“Over the past decade and more, this council has, in recognition of the absolutely vital importance of the situation, called for action and engaged with government at all levels to press the urgent and utterly vital need for a permanent solution to be identified and, crucially, put in place, as quickly as possible.
“In each new council term, that approach has been reiterated and backed up by action of various forms, including numerous motions to council and committee, extensive ministerial correspondence from council leaders and colleagues, including joint cross-party approaches, and countless discussions at both political and official level.”
The motion refers to a 10,000-signature petition to the Scottish Government in 2012 and another from 400 Argyll and Bute businesses as evidence for the need for change.
While the motion points to progress in the trunking of the A83 between Kennacraig and Campbeltown, it continued: “The key action though remains; and we remain united in our call, as a new council, for urgent action.”
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