A row has erupted over car parking at one of Scotland’s most beautiful stretches of coastline.
Camusdarach beach, at Morar, is considered to be one of Lochaber’s most scenic areas.
It is famous as Ben’s Beach in the 1980s hit film Local Hero.
Several minutes away lies Camusdarach car park, an unsuspecting source of division in the local community.
A surge in visitors in recent years has led to visitors to the area parking on the verges.
This can cause access and safety issues.
Camusdarach beach. Supplied by Valerie Stuart-OrchardIn the case of Camusdarach, the solution could be a car park extension.
What does the car park proposal entail?
The land selected for the proposed extension is adjacent to the current car park, which Highland Council believe to be 26 years old.
Currently, it holds between 15 and 20 vehicles. The proposal suggests extending this to 40 to 47 bays which would double it in size.
A pay-and-display meter would also be added to generate funding for car park maintenance.
Mr Shane Manning, Principal Traffic Officer for Highland Council, is an advocate for the extension of the car park.
Although one purpose of the extension is to crack down on verge-parking, Mr Manning states that it would also be to support local tourism.
He says: “Restrictions on roadside parking are only one factor in managing visitor activities.”
“We will always seek to support and sustain visitors as part of a thriving tourism sector.”
What is the best solution?
For several years, Morar Community Council has actively worked to crack down on verge-parking.
They put in place temporary measures like bollards, and will get yellow lines for the area soon, they hope.
However, Morar Community Council (MCC) does not believe putting a stop to verge-parking is as simple as this.
They believe that without a dedicated place to go, the vehicles will merely verge-park elsewhere in Lochaber.
However, some disagree that extending the current car park is the solution.
One local resident who is against proposal says: “What we want is for the existing car park to be made appropriate.”
“The aim was to stop verge-parking. The temporary restrictions put along the road worked brilliantly and are being made permanent.”
“This makes me question, is there any need for the car park at all?”
Is the Camusdarach car park extension necessary?
According to Morar Community Council, the answer is yes.
“The measures that were put in place have stopped some of the verge-parking,” shares an MCC member.
“But all that has done is it has displaced the vehicles to other areas. We have to look at this as a whole area, rather than just Camusdarach.”
But some residents are unconvinced, and believe that the car park would arguably make traffic safety worse, not better.
“There is only a single access road to and from the car park, it is already chaotic.”
“People would have to reverse onto the road which is dangerous. The entrance is on a double browed road with restricted visibility.”
However, Mr Manning remains confident that the extension would not cause a road safety issue.
“As a roads authority we have prescribed powers to create parking where required if we feel that it would benefit traffic management.”
Conversation